The Path To Redemption
by twin who likes to travel
Summary: This is a prequel to "Our Love". It's the story of how Dawn and Faith became a couple. It will contain an "Angel" crossover.
1. Chapter 1

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 1

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: This is a prequel to "Our Love". So obviously, this doesn't go along with what happened in the eighth season comic books, just like the rest of the stories in this saga. It begins at the end of the series finale "Chosen".

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: I have no idea of how long this story might be. I also want it to be as good or almost as good as people think "Our Love" is. Because of that, the updates might not come as quickly as they did for my most recent stories. The words in italics are a telepathic conversation between Buffy and Willow. The date at the beginning is when "Chosen" first aired, according to a few websites.

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><p>Tuesday; May 20th, 2003; near the crater formerly known as Sunnydale<p>

"Looks like the Hellmouth is officially closed for business," Faith said as she walked over to join the rest of the team focusing on the crater formerly known as Sunnydale.

"There's another one in Cleveland," Giles interrupted before taking a moment to glimpse at the young crowd beside him, "To spoil the moment."

"We saved the world," Xander exclaimed as he tried to take in what they had just escaped.

"We changed the world," Willow announced as she strolled over to her best friend and placed a hand on her shoulder, making the blonde look over at her as she continued, "I can feel them, Buffy, all over. Slayers are awakening everywhere."

"We'll have to find them," Dawn stated as she peered down at the ground.

"We will," Willow assured her.

"Yes, because the mall was actually in Sunnydale, so there's no hope of going there tomorrow," Giles informed them as he moved to stand closer to the blonde and the redhead.

"We destroyed the mall? I fought on the wrong side," Dawn joked.

"All those shops, gone: The Gap, Starbucks, Toys 'R' Us. Who will remember all those landmarks unless we tell the world of them?" Xander babbled to stay a part of the conversation.

"We have a lot of work ahead of us," Giles reminded them.

"Can I push him in?" Faith asked the redhead, who had almost groaned at the words from her mentor.

"You've got my vote," Willow teased.

"I just want to sleep, yo. For like a week," Faith explained while playfully punching him in the chest.

"I guess we all could if we wanted to," Dawn claimed with some confidence.

"Yeah, The First is scrunched so…What do you think we should do, Buffy?" Willow asked as she began to smile at what they had done.

"Yeah, you're not the one and only chosen anymore. Just got to live like a person. How's that feel?" Faith questioned as she stood behind Buffy.

"Yeah, Buffy, what are we going to do now?" Dawn muttered softly as she cast her eyes at her sister.

"HEY, NOT TO SPOIL THE MOMENT, BUT I THINK SOME OF THE PEOPLE ON THE BUS NEED TO GO TO A HOSPITAL!" Kennedy yelled from the side of the bus.

The group turned around to stare at her, saw the worry on her face, and hurriedly got back onto the bus. They each instantly chose a place to sit down as Giles got behind the wheel. As Faith got back on, she saw that Vi was still by Robin's side.

"How's he doin'?"

"I'm not a doctor, but he seems to be holding up ok, despite the injury. But it wouldn't be a bad idea to go as fast as we can," Vi declared firmly.

"You heard Vi; floor it, Giles," Faith ordered before facing the redhead again, "Do you think you could watch over him until we get to the nearest hospital? I kinda need some time to myself to think, yo."

"Ok," Vi agreed with a small smile that was shared with Faith and Robin.

The entire Scooby gang and Kennedy observed silently as Faith shuffled all the way to the back and sat down in the last row behind the driver's seat. They shared an expression of concern as they heard the brunette let out a sigh while idly staring out the back window before switching to the side window. Buffy and Willow then had a telepathic conversation, something that Willow hadn't tried in a long time.

_Buffy, you should talk to her._

_Why me? She won't want to listen to the anything that I would have to say. I bet she thinks I'm already planning on personally taking her back to prison. I'm not sure she'd listen to anyone other than Robin._

_Is that what you want to do? I mean personally take her back to prison._

_I don't know, Will. I mean yeah, it's a possibility; but she said she's trying to redeem herself. How's she supposed to do that by just hanging around in prison? I mean what if she would be willing to help train the hundreds, possibly thousands that are awakening or even continue slaying?_

_So then you're saying you don't want to take her back to prison?_

_I don't know. Maybe she could be a big help to us if we let her try. But if we did that, we'd need to do some work coming up with a new identity for her or altering her prison records. Would you be willing to do that?_

_Maybe if she was honestly wiling to help. I guess we'll know once you ask her_

_Alright, here goes nothing._

The Scoobies eyes were all on Buffy as she made a slow trek to where Faith was sitting at the back of the bus. Faith heard her coming and caught her out of the corner of her right eye.

"Faith…," Buffy tried to say but was stopped by Faith.

"Not now, B. I need some time to think about things."

"I just wanted to…"

"To say what? Not to get too comfortable because as soon as you can, you're going to drop me off at the nearest prison? Can it at least wait until after the stop at a hospital?" Faith almost snapped before turning her head to take in the scenery as the bus continued to head to the nearest hospital.

She didn't notice the appearance of hurt on Buffy's face as the blonde made her way back to where she had been sitting with Dawn, but her friends and Kennedy had. Willow then gave her an expression of regret at encouraging Buffy to try and talk to the other slayer.

_I told you so, Will._

_Sorry, Buffy. We should try again after the hospital._

_Ok, but somebody else should try talking to her next time._

Buffy let out a sigh as she sat beside Dawn, who smiled at her before laying her head on the blonde's right shoulder.

Sometime later, a hospital somewhere between the crater formerly known as Sunnydale and Los Angeles, CA

When the gang spotted a hospital, Giles quickly pulled into the parking lot near the emergency entrance. The bus came to a jolting stop, which shook Faith out of the daze she had been in.

"What the hell, Giles?" Faith growled as she got out of her seat and began to march to the front of the bus.

"Calm down, Faith, we've found a hospital," Giles insisted before the others had a chance to open their mouths.

"Sorry," Faith told him as she quickly reached Robin, picked him up, and almost raced into the hospital.

The rest of the group almost gasped at hearing the formerly rogue slayer apologizing to their mentor. Then they shared a gawk at what could be an important moment in deciding what to do nest. They followed the slayer off the bus while assisting the other injured slayers. The group got in just enough time to hear Faith shouting for someone to help her with Robin.

"SOMEBODY HELP US!"

"What happened here?" A doctor inquired anxiously while he was joined by a few a few nurses along with a gurney.

"We got in a fight with some people, and he was stabbed."

"Get him into the ER and check his vitals," the doctor commanded and stood in front of the brunette as she tried to follow after Robin was whisked away, "Sorry Miss, but you can't be in the room. You and the rest of your friends will have to wait in the waiting room. Well except for those who look like they need to be checked out as well."

"But…," Faith argued as she was interrupted by the same guy.

"No buts. We'll take good care of him," he affirmed as he moved in the direction they took Robin.

"You better," Faith demanded as a nurse suggested to the other injured to go with her.

The Scoobies, Giles, and Kennedy sat down in the nearest chairs while Faith started to pace around them.

"Faith, maybe you should sit down for a little bit," Kennedy advised softly.

"Maybe you should mind your own damn business, Kennedy," Faith warned before spinning around to exit the hospital.

"Where are you going?" Willow quizzed nervously.

"I…I need a cigarette," Faith revealed as she reached for the pack, in her denim jacket, remembered where she was, and went outside.

The gang watched her leave, until the redhead requested, "Kennedy, go with her so she doesn't…"

"Take off?" Kennedy guessed and was met with a nod.

Kennedy got out of her seat and trailed after Faith.

Less than a minute later, the sidewalk outside of the hospital

"So Red sent you out to make sure I don't run since Buffy couldn't do it?"

"Kind of. Do you wanna talk?" Kennedy mumbled as she sat down beside Faith, who let out a puff of smoke.

"Not really, yo. I just wanna smoke this thing in peace. So if you're goin' to stay, then be quiet," Faith requested and added when she noticed the other girl eyeing her, "WHAT?"

"Got another?" Kennedy replied with a small smirk.

"Sure. You better not let Red catch ya. She's bound to turn you into a frog or somethin'."

"Not likely. She's kind of scared of them."

They shared a chuckle at the thought of someone so powerful being scared of such a thing. Then the duo sat in silence as they continued to smoke away. They weren't really paying attention to the time as it passed by or the door to their right. So Kennedy jumped at the noise that came from behind them.

"KENNEDY, PUT THAT OUT RIGHT NOW!" Willow hollered, making her girlfriend drop the almost gone cigarette.

"I warned ya," Faith chuckled as they both turned around to discover the witch glaring down at her girlfriend, who put it out with the tip of her shoe.

"You didn't need to send your woman out to babysit me. I just needed to calm down with a cigarette," Faith confirmed and kept going as she faced Buffy, who had joined Willow, "I aint gonna run, B. I promise. I just wanted a break. Besides, I know you're just itchin' to drop me off at the nearest prison or police station."

"I wouldn't say that," Buffy asserted as she stepped closer to the aggravated brunette.

"Whateva," Faith scoffed, "I'm sure you thought about it. The better than thou Buffy Summers gets to take her enemy back to where she thinks I belong."

"I just came out to tell you that the doctor came back out to let us know how everyone is doing. Oh, and I'm fine. Thanks for asking," Buffy chuckled to ease the tension between them and stopped when all she received was a sneer.

Before the other three could say another word, Faith jumped up, stomped out her cigarette, and almost ran back inside. This left the other three to gawk at her.

About thirty seconds later

"So what's up, doc? Is he goin' to be ok?" Faith responded before she glared at the smiles from the doctor, the rest of her group, and a giggle from Dawn.

"Your friend is going to be ok. If he had gotten here any later, it might be a different story. The rest of your friends are doing well too."

"How soon can he get out of here?"

"I would like to keep him overnight, just to be on the safe side."

"Can I see him now?"

"I guess so. But he's unconscious right now."

"Just lead the way."

"Come with me then."

"Faith," Buffy began but was cut off by the other girl.

"What now, B?"

"I was going to call Angel. Maybe see if we could crash at their place until we decided what we're going to do next."

"Good idea," Faith agreed, "Let me know what he says."

They all gaped in shock as Faith disappeared down the hall. First, the girl who had tried to kill them in the past apologized; now she was agreeing with Buffy. This was concluded with a smile as it seemed things were looking up for them for now. The blonde excused herself to contact Angel and his crew.

Around five minutes later, Robin's room

Buffy and everyone else on their team entered the room to see Faith sitting by his bed and holding his right hand with her hands.

"So how's he doing?" Buffy began as she and the others gathered around his bed.

"He's still out, but everything else seems aight. I want to stay here until they decide to let him out. Did you get a hold of Angel?"

"No, I decided we would surprise them. So what are you two going to do after he gets out?"

"I don't know, honestly. I was thinking maybe that we'd meet up with you at Angel's tomorrow. By then you, your friends, and Giles can figure what ya wanna do. I was also thinking that maybe I, Robin, and a few other slayers could watch over the hell mouth in Cleveland," Faith described before pausing briefly at their smiles, "I might need Red to come up with a fake identity or somethin'"

"I think I could do that," Willow told her.

"Cool, yo."

"Ok, well, I guess we'll be leaving now if you're sure you want to stay," Buffy hesitated just long enough to see the brunette nod toward her, "Give us a call, and maybe one of us can come and pick you two up."

"Sounds great, B. I guess we'll see ya tomorrow then. Tell Angel I'll talk to him then."

"Alright," Buffy sighed softly as she turned away from the dark haired girl keeping a vigil over Robin.

Once again, Faith didn't notice the disappointment coming from the blonde. However, none of them saw Faith checking out both Summers girls as they filed out of the room. The urges coursing through her caused her to ogle the girls from head to toe. The remaining seconds before the gang disappeared were spent with her eyes concentrating on the butts in the apparently tight fitting jeans worn by both of them. She shook the thoughts of what they were wearing under them and what it would be like to jump into to bed with either of them from her mind. She wasn't sure how to handle the fact that more of them had been about Dawn and not her sister slayer. She wasn't wrong when she commented that the former little brat was all woman sized now.


	2. Chapter 2

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 2

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: The already mentioned _Angel_ crossover begins in this chapter. The survivors reach L.A. and show up at the Hyperion Hotel, surprising Angel and his friends. The crossover takes place after the season four finale "Home". So Angel's son, Connor, has already been forgotten by the L.A. crew when the gang reaches the hotel. However, I'm going to have Faith and Willow still remember him.

Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: Since I didn't bring it up in the author's notes for chapter one, I will do that here. Right now, the only things it will go along with what's happened in the comics so far are that the Watcher's Council headquarters and slayer training school is set up in rural Scotland, the appearance of Satsu, and Satsu's feelings toward a certain blonde. I also made slight changes to "Our Love" and "She Saved The Best For Last" to go along with what's going to happen in this story later on. It's nothing that major though. Like I said in the author's notes for my other stories, feel free to offer ideas. I can't guarantee I'll use them though. Thanks to Daryl and mg78 for their reviews. Daryl, of course there will be more. mg78, I'm sure there will be things you will want to comment on.

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><p>A few minutes later, outside the hospital<p>

As Faith was staying at Robin's bedside, the rest of the group filed out of the hospital and got back on the school bus. They all went to their original seats on the bus as Giles got behind the wheel again.

"So what do we do now?" Dawn muttered before anyone else could open their mouths.

At seeing all eyes focus on her, Buffy answered, "We go to L.A. and see if we can stay with Angel and the gang while we try to decide what to do next."

Everybody nodded in agreement with her. When that was settled, some sat in quiet contemplation while others decided to have light conversation with the people closest to them. Buffy would occasionally glimpse at the now empty seat that was previously occupied by Faith. Dawn and Willow were the only ones to notice since Xander was thinking about Anya and Giles was busy concentrating on driving. Xander had taken a minute away from his thoughts about the former vengeance demon to smack Andrew upside the head for mumbling repeatedly about why he made it while others didn't. The sound of the smack and Andrew's following whine momentarily brought out smiles and some laughs from the rest of the passengers. After warning her girlfriend about her urges, Willow caught Buffy glancing back over her shoulder to the back of the bus again.

"What's wrong, Buffy?" Willow questioned when she heard the blonde sigh and turned to her right to face her best friend.

"Nothing," Buffy lied.

"You're lying," Dawn rightfully assumed, "You're thinking she's going to run again, don't you?"

"No, she said she wouldn't, and I want to trust her. It's just with our past history, I'm not sure if I can just yet."

"Well, if she does run, she can be tracked down by a simple locator spell," the redhead assured with a smile.

"Thanks, Will."

"You're welcome."

"Is that all that's bothering you?" Dawn added when Buffy almost peeked back over her shoulder again.

"Yes," Buffy lied again and could tell the other two didn't believe her.

"You're jealous that Faith chose to stay at the hospital with Robin instead of coming with us, aren't you?"

"Why would I be jealous?" the blonde inquired as she tried to act like that idea wasn't possible.

"Because there's a chance that you and her could become friends again if you both tried and maybe even more. If she gets together with Robin and they end up going to Cleveland without you that might not happen. At least the 'even more' part," Dawn stated.

"You're crazy; I don't like Faith in that way," Buffy insisted as she inspected the wound and torn shirt she was currently wearing.

"Yeah, right," Dawn muttered as she successfully hid the slight jealousy she had going on at the moment too.

"I don't," the blonde squeaked before eyeing them and Kennedy as well.

"Oh, come on, Buffy, Faith oozes sex appeal," Kennedy said while resting her head on Willow's left shoulder, only for it to be pushed off by the redhead.

When Buffy just sighed and stared at the road in front of them, the trio smirked at her. Then they all got lost in their own thoughts.

Sometime later, the Hyperion hotel lobby

It was silent once again as the bus pulled up in front of the hotel, but that changed the moment they entered the building. Angel and his crew were happily surprised when the group walked through the door.

"Buffy, girl, how are you doing?" Lorne began as he strolled up and hugged the blonde slayer.

"Good, just saving the world…You know…the usual stuff," Buffy declared with a smile.

"Hi, Willow," Fred greeted the witch with a smile and a hug before stepping away at the sight of Kennedy glaring at her.

"It was just a friendly hug," Willow claimed as she tried to calm down her angry girlfriend.

"Whatever," Kennedy grunted.

"Buffy!" Angel called out from the shade in the room.

The gang turned around to see a hesitant smile on the face of the vampire.

"Hi, Angel," Buffy replied as she almost ran to her ex.

"I'm glad you made it out," he responded as they hugged. Then he did a quick check and noticed the group was kind of small considering how many people had been staying at the Summers' home, "Are you the only ones who made it? I mean what about Faith?"

"Faith is back at a hospital just a little bit outside of L.A."

"Why, is she ok?" Angel interrupted with worry clearly showing on his face.

"She's fine. She's there with Robin Wood. He got hurt during the fight, but the doctor said he would probably be ok. They wanted to keep him overnight for observation just to be sure," Buffy announced as Giles and the rest of the Scooby gang smiled at his concern for Faith.

Buffy, however, knew what was coming next from him.

"And Spike?" Angel continued, making Buffy roll her eyes and sigh.

"He didn't make it. I gave to him that medallion thingie you gave me. We were fighting, and it suddenly started to do what it was supposed to do. The rest of us got out of there as soon as we could. He saved us all," Buffy revealed as a tear ran down her cheek before turning back around to face everyone else, "I think we should bow our heads in a moment of silence for those who we lost in the fight."

Everyone immediately followed her lead. When they all looked back up a small tear could be seen on Xander's face but chose not to comment on it. For the third time since leaving the hospital, it was quiet. Willow was the one who chose to speak first this time.

"Hey, Angel, where's Connor?" Willow quizzed when she noticed someone was missing.

"Who's Connor?" Wesley cut in as the rest of them waited for an answer.

Angel gawked at her before indicating that the witch come closer so they could talk privately. Nobody said a word as the witch moved toward the vampire and talked softly enough that even the slayers couldn't hear them well enough. When it was over, she went back to stand by her aggravated girlfriend. What they didn't know was that Willow had quickly recited a spell to make them forget her mentioning Connor.

"So I'm guessing that you're hoping that you could crash here for a bit, or at least until you decide what you're going to do?" Angel began to get everyone to start talking again.

"Yeah," Buffy told him.

"Ok, then. You're free to use any of the empty rooms we have. So if you want to get cleaned up, rest, or both; go right ahead. Unless you'd rather get something to eat first," Angel offered with a smile.

"Yeah, I think we all might be a little hungry," Willow guessed casually,

"Among other things," Kennedy confessed as she wrapped her arms around the redhead.

After deciding on pizza and Wesley telling them which rooms belonged to Angel and his crew, the gang ran upstairs to find a room to claim and get cleaned up. Around half an hour later, all of the guests were downstairs and filling up from the two large stacks of pizza and assorted drinks. Between slices, the group decided to hit one of the local clubs that night, which made most of them think about how great it would be If Faith was there right now instead of with Robin. Buffy was feeling the second h but couldn't act on it right now for reasons she didn't want to deal with at the moment. They agreed to get some rest for a few hours before going out to the club later. When that was over, they all got up from where they were sitting.

Then Kennedy picked up Willow, laid her over her shoulder, and smirked at the rest of them while smacking the witch on her butt before dashing up the stairs. Everyone was speechless for a second. Then it seemed to cause a chain reaction. Buffy, Angel, Lorne, and Fred observed in shock as Rona and another newbie dragged Gunn and Andrew up the stairs with them while Vi grabbed a surprised Xander and led him up to her room. It got even more shocking when another newbie had whispered into Dawn's right ear. Dawn gasped and gaped at the other girl who was giving her encouraging nods towards the stairs. When Dawn shook her head no repeatedly, the rejected girl then tried again with one of her sister slayers. Her attempt was successful, and the two girls used their slayer speed to get to the selected room.

Meanwhile, Robin's hospital room

As she heard the bus leaving the parking lot, Faith gazed at Robin. She sighed at the unconscious smile on his face. Then she decided to watch something on the overhead TV to distract herself from the thoughts of the Summers girls that the post slaying urges had caused. When that failed, she searched for the cafeteria. If she couldn't cure her craving for sex right now, at least she could cure the one for food.

After using most of the money Giles had given her to last until she and Robin arrived in L.A., Faith re-entered Robin's room to find him still asleep. She almost growled when she saw that. The uncured urge had gotten worse. Even if he had been awake, it wouldn't have done much good. She still remembered what the doctor said about "strenuous" activity regarding Robin. While she was waiting for Robin to be released, the rest of them were going to be able to do what she REALLY wanted to do right now. This brought back thoughts of Buffy and Dawn. When she couldn't take it anymore, she made sure Robin was asleep and headed for the bathroom. About half an hour after Faith had returned from the bathroom, Robin woke up.

"Faith, where are we?" Robin mumbled as he sat up too soon in Faith's mind.

"Whoa, slow down, yo. We're in a hospital outside of L.A.. The doc knocked ya out so he could check to make sure you're ok. He said that he wanted you to stay overnight, for observation or somethin'. He also said that you shouldn't be doin' anythin' strenuous or whatever for awhile."

"We'll see about that," Robin challenged as he hit the button for the nurses' station.

Less than a minute later, a nurse came into the room.

"Is there a problem, Mr. Wood?"

"As a matter of fact there is. I'm fine and want to leave," Robin explained before motioning to Faith, "She says that the doctor told her that he wanted to keep me overnight for observation, and that I shouldn't do anything strenuous for awhile."

"That's right. I'll go get the doctor for you."

A few minutes later, the nurse came back with a man in his early forties.

"I'm Doctor Harrison," the man informed Robin before sharing a smirk with Faith.

"Long time no see, doc. So would ya mind telling him the same thing ya told me earlier?"

"I would be happy to. Mr. Wood, you suffered some deep cuts that came very close to some vital organs. We obviously stopped the blood loss, but I want you to stay where you are for the rest of the day. If things don't change, you can be released in the morning. I strongly advise you to not do anything remotely strenuous for at least a week."

"But I'm fine," Robin argued as he tried to get out of bed but was held down by Faith.

The doctor was clearly impressed by the surprising strength the brunette had.

"I'm serious, Mr. Wood. An inch or two to your left, and we wouldn't be talking like this right now. Your beautiful girlfriend or friend here would be saying goodbye to you and so would have the rest of the people who had come in with you too."

"Fine; I'll stay, but I won't like it," Robin complained.

"Not to be nosy, but where did they disappear to?" Dr. Harrison exclaimed.

"They had to meet up with some people in L.A.," Faith confirmed as she tried to act unaffected by the term "girlfriend".

"Ok, then. Somebody will come by every so often to make sure everything is ok. I need to check up on some of the other patients. If you need anything, just buzz the nurses' station."

After the doctor left, Robin focused on the beautiful brunette to his right.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm five by five. Why do you ask?"

"You seemed a little uncomfortable when he called you my girlfriend."

"Nah, it's cool."

"Good, because I don't want either of us to rush into anything. I just want to prove to you that there are some pretty decent guys out there. If we work out, that's great. If we don't, then that's ok too. Whatever happens between us, we'll always have Sunnydale," he concluded with a chuckle.

This brought a smile to Faith's face; and before she knew it, she leaned in and kissed him softly on the lips. This was followed by an awkward pause. To get rid of what she was feeling at the time, Faith decided that they should watch some TV. The rest of the day was spent viewing various movies, TV shows, and games. They would make comments about what was on from time to time. She had been having enough fun just hanging out with him that thoughts of the sisters were forgotten. Everything was going great until she felt him gently grab her left hand with his right.

"What do ya think you're doing, yo?" Faith almost snapped while facing him.

"I was just going to hold your hand. Is that so wrong?"

"That's a thing couples do; we're not a couple."

"Sorry," he asserted as they went back to staring at the TV.

Much later that night, the lobby of the Hyperion hotel

Like the group had agreed to earlier, they had gotten some rest before heading to the nearest all ages club. They spent around three hours there before leaving. As much as they tried, clubbing wasn't the same without Faith being there to make sure they had fun. The only ones left behind when the gang took off were Angel, Giles, Wesley, and Lorne.

"So did you have fun?" Angel asked as the girls, Xander, and Andrew made their way into the lobby.

"It was ok, but it probably would have been better if Faith could have been here to join us," Dawn divulged as most of the crowd headed to their rooms.

'We'll just have to go out again when she gets here tomorrow," Kennedy commented before leading her girlfriend upstairs.

Angel just watched in silence as the rest of the Scoobies followed the couple climbing the stairs. After the group had left for the club, he and Wesley debated on whether or not to mention the offer that they had accepted from Wolfram & Hart. After a minute, they agreed to wait until everyone they knew was there.


	3. Chapter 3

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 3

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Everyone finds out about how Angel and his crew accepted the offer from the senior partners of Wolfram & Hart.

Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: Since we don't know exactly how many newbie slayers made it out and how many rooms the hotel has, I'm going to make it that Willow and Kennedy will be the only ones sharing a room. The rest of them got their own rooms. Although they mentioned glamour spells on "Buffy T.V.S." before, I got the specifics of it from Charmed's eighth season premiere episode "Still Charmed And Kicking". Thanks for the great reviews from mg78 and Ltlconf. Ltlconf, I agree with you on almost everything you said. But they did have her use the word "yo" once in "Chosen". I will try to cut down on the use of that word, but it won't completely disappear from the rest of the story. I do have people commenting on the hypocrisy/double standard the Scoobies had involving Faith a few times throughout the story. Faith will be defended later on another topic from more than just Dawn. As for why they did what they did to Faith, it's because they were judgmental hypocrites that Joss and the writers didn't have someone call them on it enough. It's my biggest complaint about the show. There were some unrelated things I didn't like about the show, but I understood the reason for them. mg78, thanks for catching the spelling errors. While I was fixing it, I caught another error..

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><p>The next morning, around 11:30 AM, the lobby of the Hyperion hotel<p>

After having breakfast, Giles agreed to be the one to take Angel's car to pick up Faith and Robin. They arrived to hear arguing. It was clear from the voices that one of them was definitely Buffy.

"Angel, this is crazy. After everything they've done and tried to do, you really want to do that?"

"Buffy, it's not as bad as it…," Angel got out before he was interrupted by the trio entering the building.

"What's up, Angel?"

"Hello, Faith," Angel greeted with a small smile, "Not much, how are you?"

"Five by five," Faith declared before seeing how it seemed like everyone except Buffy was happy to see her and hearing Robin clearing his throat, "Oh, this is Robin Wood. His mother was a slayer when he was just a kid and livin' in New York."

Robin glared at him before asking, "He's a vampire, isn't he?"

"How did ya know?" Faith questioned him.

"I kind of sensed it."

"Ok, he's cool though. He's got a soul, and he's my friend."

Angel and Faith shared a smirk while noticing the shock from the Scoobies and Giles at hearing Faith use that word.

"I'd like to know what problem we walked in on if you don't mind," Giles stated firmly as he stared at Buffy.

"You tell him," Buffy ordered as she glared at her ex.

"Fred, Wesley, Gunn, Lorne, and I have been offered control of the L.A. branch of Wolfram & Hart."

Giles and Faith gasped and gawked at that announcement then scanned the rest of the gang for confirmation.

"We think we can do a lot of good with their resources on hand," Wesley claimed before receiving a handful of scoffs and eye rolls.

"I told him he was crazy. There's no way this is going to end well."

"I agree with B," Faith said, making everyone gasp this time, "Angel, be serious. They tried to kill you many times. They even hired to me to do it. I don't care how much good you think you can do by doing this."

Faith caught the smile shared between Buffy, Dawn, and Willow but chose not to say anything about it yet.

"Sweetiekins, we know what we're doing," Lorne tried to assure the dark haired slayer but only got a groan and rolled eyes from Faith.

"So what else did I miss?" Faith directed to the rest of them.

"Rona hit it with Gunn, and Alicia made a man out of Andrew," Kennedy informed her sister slayer.

"No way," Faith replied as she smirked at Kennedy, Rona, Alicia, Gunn, and Andrew, who appeared slightly less twitchy than the last time she saw him.

"It's true," Kennedy admitted, "We also went out to one of the local clubs, but it wasn't the same without you."

She expected them to celebrate without her, but it didn't mean it didn't hurt a little. Angel seemed to be the only one to sense this hurt. He tried giving her a comforting expression, but she just shrugged it off.

"Well, we'll just have to go out again tonight," Faith insisted and was met with smiles from everyone, including Buffy. She continued when she saw Robin was about to respond, "Not you. Doc says ya still need at least a week before you're a hundred percent."

"I'm fine," Robin muttered.

Faith dismissed it with a shrug, turned back to the others, and requested, "How about somebody toss me and Robin some keys to a couple rooms upstairs. I need to get cleaned up, and we need to get something to eat. The food at the hospital wasn't that good, and Giles didn't want to stop anywhere on the way to here."

"When you get settled, we're going to have a meeting about what the plans are now. Then we're going to go shopping for some clothes," Buffy revealed with a smile as Wesley tossed some keys toward Faith.

Faith gave her a smile of her own at actually being included in the meeting while worried about what was in store for her after that. She and Robin paced up the stairs without a word. The group waited and talked amongst themselves as Faith and Robin got cleaned up and got something to eat. When the two returned from the kitchen, the meeting began. But Faith was the one to speak first.

"Hey, where's Con…," Faith tried to ask but stopped when Willow and Angel indicated for her to drop it.

"Who?" Gunn inquired.

"Never mind," Faith mumbled before the vampire and witch motioned for her to join them in a shaded area farther away from the rest of the people in the room.

The rest observed in confusion as the trio whispered to each other

"What's the deal, yo? Why are we the only ones who know about Connor?"

"Because it was part of the deal I made with Wolfram & Hart. I agreed if they could give him a shot at a normal life. I was supposed to be the only one to remember him, but I guess they forgot about you two or didn't care if you remembered him or not," Angel explained.

"So you can't say anything more about him, Faith," Willow warned her.

"Whatever, Red."

"So shall we get this meeting started?" Giles suggested and got nods and sighs of agreement

"Where should we start?" Willow quizzed before as she glanced for a few seconds at everyone.

"I'm guessing this is where you decide how many want to come along with Buffy while she takes me back to prison," Faith answered with a slight sneer.

"Why do you keep saying that?" Buffy demanded as anger and hurt started to appear.

"It's like I said outside the hospital. I know you're itchin' to get me back to prison because YOU and YOUR friends will never trust me again. It doesn't matter how hard I try to redeem myself. Not to mention that you're hypocrites. Buffy tried to feed me to Angel, Anya killed more people than I did, Buffy tried to kill all of you, and Willow almost ended the world. But you forgave them. That's why."

The Scooby gang wasn't sure how to react at being called out on that. It got even worse as every newbie, including Kennedy, moved away from them at least a few inches.

"We did before we kicked Buffy out," Willow reminded her while giving her best friend another expression of regret for what happened that day.

"Whatever, it's different now. With all these new slayers, you'll think you won't need me or much less want me around. Pretty much how it was when we first met."

"I want you around," Kennedy voiced almost immediately.

This was followed by a round of "Me too." and "Ditto." from all of the newbie slayers. Faith smirked at the idea of possibly becoming friends with the ones who claimed they wanted her there.

"You're right, ok? I'm…I'm s-sorry. If we decided to NOT send you back to prison, what were you thinking about doing?" Buffy challenged as all eyes focused on the "chosen two".

Faith eyed everyone before speaking, "I was still thinking that maybe Robin, a few other slayers, and I could guard the hellmouth in Cleveland that Giles was talking about yesterday after the fight. But we'd have to do somethin' because I'm pretty sure I'm still considered a fugitive."

"I think Giles and I could do something about that. But I could do a spell until we got it done."

"What kinda spell?" Faith exclaimed while being a little uncomfortable at what the witch could do to her.

"A glamour one. I could make it so the only ones who would see the real you are us."

"Fine," Faith relented, "Just make sure I'm still hot to everyone outside."

"Ok, and I'm sorry too."

"Me too." Dawn spoke softly.

"Ditto," Xander muttered.

"Better late than never, I guess," Faith concluded with a smirk.

The newbies smiled and gradually moved back to where they were sitting, Willow sighed in relief the very moment Kennedy's arm was around her waist.

"Since Angel and his crew have decided to work at Evil Inc., I think the sooner we're out of here the better off we'll be," Buffy determined while trying to ignore the gaze she was getting from Angel.

They continued the rest of the meeting with every survivor from Sunnydale speaking their mind on their future. After that was settled and the meeting ended, Willow and Fred collected everything Willow needed for the spell. As the witch got organized, she noticed the smile coming from Fred and the slight anger from Kennedy at the attention the woman was directing to her girlfriend. Willow then spoke in Latin for a minute before smiling again at the nervous slayer.

"There, that should work until we can give you a new identity or fix your criminal record."

"Thanks, Red." Faith said before facing the crowd, "Do I look any different?"

"No," Dawn commented, confusing them all except Willow.

"Look at this," Willow instructed as a full length mirror appeared in front of the slayer.

The rest got up and stood behind Faith as she inspected herself in the mirror. There were a few whistles as they all saw a reflection of an equally hot woman except for the woman being a blonde. Faith smirked at the redhead as she turned away from the mirror.

"I've wondered what I'd look like as a blonde. I guess you did too."

"Is this ok until we figure it out?"

"Yeah, I guess. So once again, the only ones to see the real me is everyone in the hotel?"

"Exactly," Willow confirmed.

"Now, we hit the stores," Buffy decided.

"I don't know, B, shoppin' for clothes isn't my thing."

"Come on, Faith. We all need some more clothes. If you're planning on staying in Cleveland to help guard the hellmouth, it would be a good idea to have some more clothes."

"Can't ya just get some for me?"

"And have you complain about what I got? I don't think so. And you could have fun taunting whatever guys we might see there."

"Since ya put it that way, I guess it won't be so bad."

Angel and his gang watched quietly as the others climbed onto the bus and headed for the nearest shopping center armed with credit cards and some cash. Some of it came from Angel himself.

Around three hours later, the nearest shopping center

The entire group, which had split up into a few different groups when they first got there, met up in the food court. Each girl had two or three bags while the guys had two each. Faith had gone with Buffy's suggestion and made sure either Summers was around when she caught guys ogling her. She had taunted them by occasionally talking or whispering while touching Dawn and Buffy and brushing up against the sisters as they checked out clothes. Willow switched back and forth from being shocked and unaffected while Kennedy would frequently smirk along with Faith. However, Faith surprised them all when they reached the food court.

"So what should we have to eat, babe?" Faith began as she gazed directly at Buffy.

"I d-don't kn-know," Buffy stuttered at the look on the slayer's face.

It could be described as a hunger for more than food.

"Well, some burgers sound good to me. How about burgers with everything on them? I'll find us a place to sit while you get the food," Faith mentioned as she moved closer to the blonde in front of her.

"O-Ok," Buffy stuttered again as she started to walk away from her but was stopped by the same brunette.

"Not so fast," Faith commanded as she set her bags down and pulled Buffy toward her by the hips.

"What are you do…"

Buffy's words were cut off as Faith wrapped her arms around the blonde and kissed her. Their group gasped and gaped as this happened. It only got more interesting as the intensity of the kiss caused Buffy to drop the bags she was holding. Faith didn't waste a second when Buffy opened her mouth a little. She took it a step further by gently placing her hands on the blonde's butt for a second before giving it a soft squeeze and letting go. She felt the blonde shift in her arms as they kissed. She broke this kiss and stepped back to see Buffy's reaction. She smirked as the blonde's eyes remained closed for a few seconds. Buffy opened her eyes but was speechless at what her former enemy had done in front of so many people.

"Don't forget the sodas," Faith added before locating some empty seats near the center of the food court.

Buffy jumped and yelped a little as Faith's left hand smacked her lightly on her butt while heading toward the chairs. The rest of the group stood still for a few seconds before deciding what they wanted and marching to the different spots to get their food. Willow, Kennedy, and Dawn were the first to join Faith.

"What got into you?" Dawn almost snapped as she sat across from Faith.

"Just having fun like Buffy said earlier, yo."

"Alright, but did you really need to do that?"

"Yeah. What I was doing earlier wasn't getting the reaction I was hopin' for. Not jealous, are ya?"

"Of course not," Dawn murmured but not without showing the smallest amount of unexpected jealousy.

"Yeah, you are," Faith chuckled before leaning in to kiss Dawn softly on the lips.

"No, I'm no…," Dawn attempted to argue before Faith's lips pressed up against hers.

"Better now?" Faith teased after breaking the kiss.

Willow had the same gawk on her face from when Faith had kissed Buffy while Kennedy smirked and whistled softly.

"What do you think you're doing now?" a voice growled behind Dawn.

"Chill, B. It was just a kiss," Faith announced as she patted the empty seat to her right.

"Why did you kiss her?"

"Dawnie got jealous of ya," Faith divulged as Buffy slowly sat down beside her.

"I did not," Dawn denied, "and don't call me Dawnie."

"Whatever ya say, D," Faith conceded as she grabbed the food that the blonde had set down in front of her and began eating.

"Just don't do it again," Buffy advised before eating as well.

Faith wasn't sure, but she thought she sensed jealousy from the blonde this time. She glimpsed at Willow and Kennedy, who seemed to be thinking the same thing. Nobody said a word as Robin reached the table and sat in the empty chair to Faith's left. He studied the faces of everyone at the table. Faith smiled at him before taking another bite of her food. After they were all full, they split up for about another half hour. Then they all felt the need to leave and get back to the hotel. As they entered the hotel, it was clear to Angel and his friends that something was wrong.

Angel started the conversation, "So how did it go?"

"It didn't completely suck," Faith asserted with a half smile until she saw the frown on Robin's face.

She groaned and continued strolling up the path to her room.

"What happened?" Fred asked as their guests stood in the lobby silently.

The sisters and Willow described what had gone on during their trip with the other slayers adding to the conversation from time to time. Gunn and Wesley were stunned at hearing about Faith's actions toward the Summers' women. After all of the shopping bags were put into the right rooms, the group gathered in the lobby.


	4. Chapter 4

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 4

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: R (only for one curse word)

Summary: Dawn is saved from a demon by Faith.

Disclaimer: I own nothing,

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

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><p>As the girls, Andrew, Xander, Gunn, and Fred made plans to go out to the same club they had gone to the night before, they were interrupted by Angel.<p>

"Umm, Buffy?" Angel began.

"Yeah?"

"I just found out that there's been some recent demon activity."

"What else is new?" Xander muttered.

The girls just rolled their eyes at his response.

"I think we should deal with it tonight."

"What's so important that it has to be taken care of tonight?" the blonde replied.

"Because of the condition of the victims."

"What condition?"

"The only things left were the clothes, the bones, and a few organs."

"Do you have any other information about these demons?" Giles asked from a nearby chair in the lobby, "For example: the type, strengths, weaknesses, how to kill them, and what happens after they're dead?"

"Nothing. Wesley and I've gone through every book we have and gotten nowhere."

"Well, I guess that means the plans for tonight have been cancelled or at least delayed," Dawn grumbled, "Since we don't know much about these things, I'm assuming that means everyone who isn't a slayer or a vampire with a soul stays here until you get back."

"Yes," Buffy answered.

"I can help, Buffy. I've got my magic under control."

"So can I," Dawn and Xander said at the same time.

"I can't risk the three of you getting hurt or killed," Buffy declared firmly.

"But you let me help in the fight against The First," Xander argued.

"Yeah," Dawn added.

"That's when we knew what we were fighting."

"You're just saying that because of my eye, aren't you?"

"Kinda," Buffy revealed.

"Well, my eyes are fine," Dawn stated.

"It's still too dangerous."

"I say let her go, B. If things get too bad, we'll have her either hide or get out of there as soon as possible," Faith announced before facing Dawn, "Got it?"

"Fine," Dawn conceded.

"I still say she shouldn't go."

"Please, Buffy," Dawn pleaded.

"I'll watch her back, B," Faith promised when it didn't seem like Buffy was going to budge on her decision.

"You promise?" Buffy responded.

"Yeah."

"Ok. But if she gets hurt, it's YOUR fault."

"Whatever ya say," Faith informed the blonde before glancing at Dawn, who was smiling at her.

"What about me?" Willow challenged anxiously.

"No, you and Fred might try and see if you can find anything else on these unknown demons."

"Alright," Willow relented before sharing a smile with Fred.

"I think I could help Will too," Kennedy offered as she failed at trying to appear not jealous of Willow spending time with a girl that wasn't her.

"I'll be ok, baby," Will assured after she placed a soft kiss on the other girl's lips.

"You better be."

"You might want to grab some weapons since we don't know what we're dealing with," Angel suggested.

"I agree," Buffy confirmed as they headed to where the crew kept their weapons.

They grabbed some swords, crossbows, and any other weapons they thought could help. Then they marched out into the night in search of their target with the hopes of getting rid of them quickly. Angel, Gunn, and a few Slayers went in one direction while the remaining slayers and Dawn patrolled in another. They had been walking around for what seemed like half an hour when they heard some noise that was probably coming from what they were looking for.

"Sshh," Buffy whispered to her team, and they hid a little behind an old and abandoned building.

From where they hid, they could hear growls and the sound of the demons feeding on their victims. Then they saw clothes that had belonged to the victims. They filed one by one toward the direction the sounds were coming from. As they advanced to the slightly dark area, one of the slayers kicked something that got their enemy's attention. The next thing they saw were demons appearing from out of the dark into the light from the few, overhead street lights. They gasped at the sight of them. They were at least twice the size of the slayers and had green, scaly skin and red eyes.

They were almost immediately attacked by the demons. They seemed pretty agile considering their size. Each slayer felt the power of the creatures when they were hit. It was hard enough to send the girls to the ground almost a foot back. Their weapons were knocked out of their hands as they fell to the ground. Each slayer was taking on one demon as Dawn watched and tried to decide which one would need her help the most. The girls and the demons were exchanging a variety of punches and kicks that were definitely going to leave bruises on the slayers. Dawn shuffled toward one of the newbie slayers, who seemed to be in trouble. As she did, she heard a yell from Faith.

"DAWN, LOOK OUT!"

Dawn quickly turned around to see another demon coming out of the dark. As it reached her, she heard another yell.

"DAWN, DUCK!" Faith ordered as she jumped over the kneeling girl and kicked the demon solidly in the chest.

Dawn and Faith observed as it was only moved back about three feet.

"Hide," Faith demanded to the youngest Summers as the demon bared its apparently sharp teeth.

At Faith's commands to her sister, Buffy glanced over at them. Since both Faith and Dawn were doing what they said they would do, the blonde turned back around to focus on the demon and barely dodged a punch aiming straight at her head. Dawn could only stare as Faith received a back handed punch to her nose from her demon. It instantly started to bleed. Dawn guessed that it was now broken thanks to her. It only got worse when the demon grabbed the brunette's left arm and applied enough pressure to break it.

"FUCK!" Faith growled in pain as she gave her opponent an upwards kick to the head that got the demon to let go.

Dawn shifted her attention for a few seconds to the other slayers, who seemed to be barely holding their own with the ones they were fighting. Somehow, Faith was able to get the knife she had stashed in her boot and stabbed it in the chest. It stumbled as it tried to grab the knife. Faith took this opportunity to give one of the legs a swift kick. The creature fell to the ground but not without punching Faith on the way down. Faith felt dizzy but managed to pick up the sword she had brought with her. She went straight for its neck and was able to cut off the head before collapsing to the ground. Almost immediately after the demon's head was separated from the rest of its body, both pieces exploded into a big pile of goo.

"CUT OFF THEIR HEADS! THEY'LL EXPLODE IF YOU DO!" Dawn instructed to the other slayers.

The first chances they got, the others did exactly that. However, Dawn didn't notice as she ran to Faith. She gently rolled Faith onto her back to see a few bruises on her face, a broken nose, and her left arm broken.

"Faith, wake up, PLEASE!" Dawn begged and yelped at her sister when nothing happened, "Buffy, help!"

The blonde was cutting the head off of the one that Faith had left behind to protect Dawn when she heard her sister call out to her. The brunette apparently stabbed it but hadn't gotten the chance to behead it yet.

"Dawn, what's…," Buffy tried to inquire but became silent and dropped her sword as she knelt down beside Dawn and the unconscious slayer.

In the blonde's opinion, Faith looked worse than when she had ended up in the hospital before her graduation.

"What happened?" Vi quizzed as she got to the sisters and examined the brunette closely.

Dawn described everything that she had seen.

"I TOLD you that you should've stayed back at the hotel," Buffy exclaimed and continued at the tears from her sister, who reacted as if she had been slapped across the face, "I'm sorry."

"We need to get her to a hospital," Kennedy claimed.

"She's right," Rona determined after she glimpsed at Faith.

"Dawn and I will take her to the nearest hospital. Everyone else, go back to the hotel, tell them what happened, track down the other group, and get to the hospital as soon as you can."

Buffy carefully picked up Faith and Dawn grabbed the weapons they had brought with them and handed them to Rona and Vi. The sisters then raced to the nearest hospital as the others followed Buffy's instructions.

Around an hour later, a local hospital, the waiting room of the emergency ward

Dawn and Buffy had been waiting for forty-five minutes while the rest had been waiting about half an hour. When the rest had gotten there, a few bruises could be seen on the faces of each slayer that had been with the sisters. After they all found a chair to sit in, everyone who hadn't been with the sisters questioned them on what happened. A few of the newbies described what went down with Buffy and Dawn nodding along. They failed in their attempt to hold back the nervous feelings toward Faith.

"I'm sure she'll be alright," Willow affirmed as she tried to comfort the worried Summers girls.

"I hope so, Will," Dawn mumbled before lightly biting her lower lip.

"Did she really look worse than she did after your fight at her place back in Sunnydale?"

"Yes. At least then her nose and arm weren't broken."

"Dawn, sit down," Buffy requested after the younger girl began to pace around the room.

"Am I the only who thinks it's strange that Angel sent the girls on a mission to kill something that we don't know too much about? The girls look like they went a few rounds with Evander Holyfield while Angel, Gunn, and the few slayers that went with them don't have a scratch on them."

"What are you implying, Xander? That Angel wanted this to happen to us?" Buffy countered as she began to get out of her chair.

"He's not saying that, Buff," Willow asserted, "Are you, Xander?"

When her friend remained quiet, Buffy got right in his face.

"YOU ARE!"

They took a few seconds to look over at Angel and Gunn, who were both angry at his accusation.

"You said it yourself. It's crazy for them to take over Wolfram & Hart. Who's to say they haven't already started to change on us. We can't trust them, Buff."

"This coming from a guy still hung up on a girl he never had a chance with," Angel scoffed.

Angel gave her a regretful expression after the blonde glared at him.

"We thought we could cover more ground quicker if we split up. We had no idea where their hideout was," Gunn explained confidently.

Before another word could be said, they were interrupted by a doctor.

"Are you all here for the woman brought in by these two?" the woman grilled as she motioned to Buffy and Dawn.

"Yes," they all told her unanimously.

"How is she?" Dawn voiced with concern clearly showing on her face.

"We put a put a cast on her arm and set her nose back into place and taped it up so it could mend. The bruises on her face should disappear soon, but I'm kind of worried about the other bruises we found."

"What other bruises?" Buffy cut in.

"There were several bruises on her upper body. With the force it could have taken to make those bruises, I'm surprised that she didn't have more broken bones. How did she and the rest of you get those bruises?"

"From some drunks who tried to start a fight," Dawn lied quickly.

"Did you contact the police?"

"No, after they got knocked on their asses, it was pretty much over," Kennedy blurted out.

The woman studied the brunette suspiciously before letting the topic drop.

"Can we see her?" Dawn remarked anxiously

"Sure, but not all at once and only for few minutes each." the doctor insisted, "No more than three at a time. So who's first?"

The rest sat back down as Buffy, Dawn, and Angel made the first trip. After each of them had taken their turn, they gathered outside her door.

"When can we take her home?" Buffy sighed as she leaned against the wall by the door to Faith's room.

"Is she going to wake up soon?" Dawn murmured softly.

"She has a semi-serious concussion. I'd like to keep her overnight for observation. The painkillers we gave her should have her knocked out until morning. Visiting hours are up in a few hours anyway, so you can go home and come back in the morning."

"Can I stay the night? I promise I won't get in the way," Dawn begged lightly.

"I don't think…," the doctor began to advise but caved at the look on Dawn's face, "Ok, you can stay. If there are any problems, we will kick you out until the morning and your sister will have to come and get you."

"I'm going to stay, too, if that's ok?"

"Ok, but the same goes for you as well."

"You really care about her, don't you?" the doctor directed to Dawn, who had been staring at Faith through the glass.

"She saved…," Dawn started to confess but paused when she realized what she was doing and concluded, "Yeah."

"It's nice to see she has so many friends, especially a close one like her," the doctor commented and pointed to Dawn at the sight of the girl barely taking her eyes off of Faith.

Everyone else became speechless at that comment but managed to hide the surprise. The gang had a brief talk before they said their goodnights to the sisters. During the talk, they all agreed to put off the celebrating until they knew the full extent of Faith's injuries. Dawn turned her head at the feeling of a soft hand resting on her right shoulder. She smiled back as Willow gave her a comforting smile. After Willow pulled her hand away, Dawn reentered Faith's room. They all watched for a few seconds as Dawn sat down beside Faith's bed and gently held Faith's right hand with her own. Then they silently left the hospital as Buffy joined her sister by Faith's bed.


	5. Chapter 5

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 5

Author: twin who likes to travel

Raring: PG-13

Summary: Faith is confronted by both Dawn and Buffy over what happened the previous night.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: Since they didn't give us a lot of information on Faith, I'm going to assume the only things Buffy found out about her is where she grew up and about the boys she mentioned on the show. I'm going with my own opinions to explain Faith's behavior around everyone. As for her age, I decided to make it that she's not that much younger than Buffy. Buffy was around twenty-two by the end of the show. The italicized words in this chapter are for a flashback from the season three episode "Graduation Day". RainbowSmurfette, thanks for adding my story to your alert list. I hope you decide to leave a review in the future as well.

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><p>Thursday, May 22nd, 9:00 AM, Faith's hospital room<p>

Buffy was asleep in a chair along the wall across from Faith while Dawn slept in the same chair she had been in since going back into Faith's room the previous day. However, when Buffy had fallen asleep, she had moved the chair a little bit closer to Faith's right side. Her head was titled backward while she held Faith's right hand with her left. Both awoke to the noise from Faith.

"Where am I? Is Dawn ok?" Faith asked before focusing on the happy and excited faces of Buffy and Dawn.

"You're in a local hospital. You've been here since we brought you in last night," Buffy declared as the brunette attempted to sit up but groaned in pain again before succeeding.

"What am I doin' in a hospital?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" the blonde questioned as she slowly got out of her chair and stretched briefly.

"Well, I was fighting one of those unknown demons. I had kicked him as he was trying to get my knife outta his chest. He hit me on the way down. I grabbed the sword and tried to take its head off. So what happened after that?"

"You took his head off before falling to the ground," Dawn confirmed as she rubbed the back of her own neck and her hero stared at her.

"Then what?"

"Because of you, we found out that decapitating it makes it explode into a puddle of goo."

"Wicked. I'm sorry I missed it. Man, that thing hit almost as hard as 'The Beast'."

"I'm going to get the doctor," Buffy claimed as she headed to the door.

"Good, see if they'll let me outta here, aight?"

"Ok," Buffy smirked back at her before leaving.

Faith then gazed at Dawn for about a minute before she saw a few tears falling onto the younger girl's cheeks.

"Whatcha cryin' for, D? We're alive. You don't seem to have any bruises. I guess other than this cast, whatever is on my nose, and the few marks on my face like B has, I'm fine."

"You don't realize what you did last night, do you?" Dawn answered as she wiped away the tears.

"I killed another demon; just another step in my path to redemption."

"It was more than that. You…You saved my life."

"I wouldn't go…"

Before Faith could continue, she was shocked by Dawn hugging her. Dawn broke the hug immediately after she realized what she was doing. Faith's smirk surprisingly made her want to kiss the slayer this time, which she did after a few moments of hesitation. Faith knew that she should stop the other girl before Buffy came back, but it felt good so she didn't. She even used her right hand to massage Dawn's neck as they kissed. It had gotten the younger girl to moan softly. The kiss was broken less than a minute later by several gasps and a yelp from Buffy.

"Dawn, what are you doing?"

"I'm thanking the girl who saved…," she tried to explain to everyone but stopped when the same doctor had appeared beside her sister.

"Can you give us a minute or two?" Buffy requested to the woman standing beside her.

"Sure," the woman agreed and stepped out of the room.

When the door closed, Dawn spoke again.

"Like I was saying, I was thanking the girl who saved my life. Do you have a problem with that?"

"No, but…but you could have just said thanks and left it at that. Was it her idea for you to kiss her?" Buffy inquired as she almost glared at the other slayer.

"It was hers, not mine. Not that I minded. Dawn is a very cute girl. We were talking, and she got all emotional and kissed me."

They all saw the blush on Dawn's face at hearing that.

"Why were you rubbing Dawnie's neck?" Willow quizzed with a curious smile.

"I think D strained it a little. How long have you been here, D?"

"I was here all night."

"All night? I didn't think B would let you do that."

"She was here all night too."

"Really?"

"Yes," the blonde sighed, "Thanks for keeping your promise about watching her back."

"No problem, B," Faith replied casually but couldn't hide the smirk at being thanked again, "So get the doc back in here. I wanna leave already."

The doctor reappeared about fifteen seconds later.

"Miss, do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

"Go ahead," Faith offered but was kind of nervous about what could happen next.

"Do you normally get in fights like you did last night?"

Faith arched her eyebrow at everyone, including the doctor.

"Your friends said that you were attacked by some drunks who wanted to start a fight."

"Drunks?" Faith muttered and caught the signal to agree with what her 'friends' had told the other woman, "Oh, right. Sometimes, I guess."

"So how was a group of drunken men able to break your arm?"

"Steel pipe," Faith lied before the rest could say anything.

"Ok. I guess that's how the bruises got on the rest of your body."

"What other ones?"

"You have some around your chest and on your abdomen. You're lucky that they didn't break any other bones."

Faith lifted up her hospital gown just enough to see under it and saw the black and purple marks on her body.

"Yeah, lucky me," Faith grunted.

"Is fighting like that how you got your scar?"

"What scar?"

'The one around the middle of your abdomen," the doctor informed her.

"Somethin' like that," Faith responded before going into a daze with Buffy, who peered down at the floor for a few seconds after shaking it off.

Their friends sensed that both slayers had flashed back to the night of their fight years ago.

"_You did it," Faith announced after glancing down at where she had been stabbed. She then punched Buffy and looked back at the wound again, "You killed me."_

_Buffy watched Faith get onto the ledge from where she had fallen. The brunette peeked over her left shoulder before facing the blonde again._

"_Still won't help your boy though. Shoulda been there, B. Quite a ride."_

_Buffy could only watch again as Faith did a freefall off the building onto a truck passing by below._

"So can I go now?" Faith challenged with aggravation clearly showing on her face.

"I just need to do a quick check up, so if your friends could leave the room until I'm done and you're dressed."

The rest of them quietly and quickly left the room. As soon as they left, the doctor did as she said. Faith came out of the room about five minutes later with the doctor following right behind her.

"I guess she can go home with us," Buffy assumed.

"Yes, she can. I advised her to not do anything like what got her here last night or anything else strenuous that could prolong her injuries. Come back in a month. The cast should be able to come off by then or at least soon."

Faith only rolled her eyes and walked away. Everyone except Buffy and Dawn quickly joined her.

"Kind of stubborn, isn't she?" the doctor stated.

"Yeah, uh, we might not be here for another month," the sisters informed her.

"Ok. Any doctor should be able to take it off, but if they need anything from us be sure to let us know."

"Sure, thank you," they concluded before chasing after the others in their group.

Sometime later, the hotel lobby

"I guess we're both sidelined for awhile," Robin chuckled at Faith's aggravation.

"Screw that. I'm a slayer. The bruises should be gone in a day or two."

"Faith, you heard the doctor. You need to rest," Buffy reminded her.

"So what, B, I'm not spending the rest of my birthday sober and in bed without company," Faith blurted out and groaned at revealing the secret she had kept from them since they met.

"IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY?" both Summers girls accidentally shouted.

"Yeah, no big deal."

"How old are you today?" Dawn continued.

"Twenty-two."

"Wow you're not that much younger than Buffy. We should throw you a party."

"No need for that. I'll just go get some alcohol and find some other way to pass the time until this day is over."

"Come on; it could be fun."

"Really, D. It's ok. I mean I haven't had one before so why start now?"

"You have never had a birthday party?" Dawn gasped.

"Well, when you never get presents, a party is kind of pointless."

"Never?" Dawn gasped again.

"Yeah. My mom didn't love me enough to do any of that. I'm going to go change then get some beer. Got any cash on ya, Angel? I don't have any on me right now."

"We'll see when you get back downstairs."

"Whatever," Faith mumbled before swiftly climbing the stairs leading to her room.

She didn't bother to notice the reactions as she left. There was a variety of shock, regret, and sadness.

"We HAVE to throw her a party and get her something," Dawn insisted as more tears made their way down her cheeks.

"You heard what she said," Buffy mentioned without a second thought.

"I DON'T care. I want to throw her one. Almost everyone deserves a party, especially if they've NEVER had one. Who's with me?" Dawn said before seeing what the others thought.

She smiled a little as she discovered her sadness was shared with Willow and Fred.

"I am," the redhead asserted.

The rest voiced their agreement on the idea. They came up with the plan of Dawn distracting her by taking the brunette on a shopping trip courtesy of Angel.

As soon as the girls left, the Angel crew would get the lobby set up for the surprise party and the others would go get presents for the birthday girl.

Slightly over an hour later, the same shopping center they had gone to the day before

The duo had been searching for a present for around half an hour before

Faith felt the need to say more than her opinion when Dawn suggested something.

"So why are you doin' this, D?"

"Doing what?"

"Takin' me shoppin' when you know it's not my thing."

"Because Angel wanted to get you something. We already told you that."

"Just Angel?"

"What do you mean?"

"Come on, D. I might not be the brightest out of all of you, but I think I can tell what's goin' on here."

"Nothing else is going on other than this shopping trip, so try to enjoy it and pick something to make Angel happy."

"Fine, but I know that the rest are plannin' a party for me and possibly even gettin' me presents."

"I swear we're not. It was solely Angel's decision to get you something since you called him a friend. The rest of us are letting you do what you want to do, just as long as it's legal."

"So then a round in the sack with ya is out of the question?" Faith teased but could almost imagine what it would be like to get the younger girl into her bed. She added when Dawn only gaped at her, "I'm only kidding. Big sis wouldn't like it too much if I tried to get her lil' sis into my bed. No matter how fun it could be. Not to mention that's illegal since I know you're not eighteen yet."

"It's not in Europe. I mean the age of consent law."

"Oh, really? What is it there?"

"In Scotland, I think it's fourteen or sixteen and sixteen in most of Europe "

"And you know this how?"

"I did a check awhile back."

"Why would you do that?"

"I was…curious, ok?"

"So then you're ready to have sex with someone?"

"I don't know, maybe."

"Maybe's cool. But if you're wonderin' what it would be like to do that with a girl, especially a hot one with superpowers, I would be willin' to show ya when you are ready."

She smirked at hearing Dawn gulp and whispered to her when they both spotted a couple of guys ogling them. Faith suddenly placed a quick kiss on the other girl's left cheek before checking out some other stores.

"I guess they should be done setting up for it by now. The party I mean."

"There is no…," Dawn griped until she became confused at why Faith looked down toward the floor in front of her.

"Your friends might be fooled by the lies you and Buffy tell them. But I can feel when you are."

Faith smirked before encouraging her to peer down at the same spot she had done earlier. She saw Faith's arm extended out as if she was going to grab Dawn's hand. When Faith didn't move from that position and smirked for a second time, the younger girl slowly raised her hand out and gently grabbed Faith's. She smiled back as the slayer just as gently squeezed her hand and led her farther away from the stores. Dawn sighed happily as they exited the mall and got a surprise from the formerly rogue slayer. After seeing they were alone, at least temporarily, Faith pushed Dawn back to a wall and got even closer.

"The kiss inside was for fun. This kiss is for the one you gave me in the hospital. Ya can't tell B though. She'd freak a little. Understand?"

"Yes," Dawn relented softly as Faith placed her hands on Dawn's hips and kissed her just as softly for a few seconds before pulling away.

"How was that?" Faith chuckled as she removed her hands from Dawn's hips.

"Five by five," Dawn admitted, "How was it for you?"

"It didn't suck," Faith revealed instantly and smirked.

At seeing Dawn smile, Faith pulled her close again and hugged her for ten seconds. Dawn sighed happily for a second time at how strangely comforting the hug had been. She didn't know that the older girl had peeked down at her butt and was internally struggling with the thought of touching it in some way.

Sometime later, outside the Hyperion hotel

The duo returned to see a darkened lobby with something covering the windows to block out the sunlight. Faith smirked at the way the other girl nervously bit her lower lip. A lip she had enjoyed kissing.

"Hmm, it looks kind of dark in there. I wonder what's going to happen next," Faith voiced sarcastically as they both took a few steps closer to the door.

"I don't know," Dawn remarked while holding in a sigh at how obvious everyone had been.

"Riiight," Faith chuckled as she prolonged her response to show that she didn't believe the younger girl, "Well, let's get this over with."

"Please try to act surprised," Dawn pleaded.

"I ain't makin' any promises, D."

Faith slowly opened the door. A few seconds later, the lights came on.

"SURPRISE!" they all yelled as loud as they could.

Faith humored the younger girl by acting surprised but decided to fake anger as well.

"Whose idea was this?" she growled, successfully getting them to believe she was angry.

"It was Dawn's. We told her not to," Xander and Andrew confessed together and ended it with, "OW!"

Faith had smirked as both of them were punched in the arm by the closest slayer. Buffy had hit Xander while Kennedy had hit Andrew.

"Well, it was," Andrew whined, only to get hit again.

"I knew it," the brunette almost hissed at Dawn before setting the bag down on the floor.

Faith's reaction had scared the girl a little, along with almost everyone from Sunnydale. Only Buffy had remained calm. They watched as Faith marched away from them and toward the kitchen. Dawn trailed behind her until she was stopped by a small but powerful hand landing on her right shoulder. She spun around to find Buffy silently suggesting that she shouldn't follow her. Dawn ignored it and chased after the birthday girl anyway.


	6. Chapter 6

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 6.

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: the Sunnydale and L.A. teams celebrate Faith's birthday and beating The First.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's note: RainbowSmurfette, thanks for the review. Does it mean that you think I'm doing a good job at keeping this story as error free as possible? QuarksEatLeptons, thanks for adding my story to your alert list. Maybe you could leave a review as well. It doesn't say anywhere in your profile about liking Buffy T.V.S..

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><p>Less than a minute later, the hotel kitchen<p>

When she reached the kitchen, she saw Faith grabbing what probably was a beer from the refrigerator with her back to Dawn.

"What do ya want, D?"

"How did you know it was going to be me? It could have been Buffy."

"Lucky guess," Faith revealed as she closed the door but still kept her back to the younger girl.

"I'm s-sorry, F-Faith."

"Sure," Faith muttered softer than normal.

"I mean it. I thought you deserved at least one."

"Whatever."

"Would you please turn around?"

"Why?"

"Because I want you to see that I'm honestly sorry."

"I believe you," Faith stated casually without moving at all.

"If you turn around, we can cancel the party and let you do whatever you want to do until we go out again to celebrate winning the fight against The First."

"You promise?"

"Of course I do."

"Fine."

"See, that wasn't so…," Dawn asserted and paused at what she saw, "I knew it."

"You knew what?"

"That secretly you wanted to have one. So it would show that SOMEONE cared enough to go through any possible problems with having one."

"No," Faith denied as Dawn walked up to her.

"Ok, maybe you're not big on those types of parties, but you're touched that I convinced them to throw you one."

"You can't tell anyone," Faith ordered as she set her beer down on the counter and gripped Dawn's shoulders firmly.

"Ow," Dawn yelped softly, getting Faith to instantly let her go.

"I'm sorry, D, I mean it. Promise me you won't tell anyone."

"I won't," Dawn agreed before suddenly hugging her.

"Good." _Why am I letting her do this, and why does it feel good?_

"So we can still have the party?"

"Yes. But if they ask, I only agreed because I couldn't resist the 'Summers pout'."

"You mean this one?" the younger Summers guessed and made a pouting expression.

"That's the one," Faith informed as she fought the urge to take the girl in her arms and kiss the soft, pouty lips.

"But you have to promise me something though."

"What's that?"

"Try to quit smoking."

"Why?"

"Because now that we're getting a second chance at a friendship, I want you to stick around for awhile. Besides, if we ever kiss again, I don't want it to be like kissing an ashtray."

"Ok, I'll try, just for you."

"Thanks."

After Faith made sure she looked ok, she led Dawn out of the kitchen. Dawn was still smiling from the hug and couldn't help but think Faith looked cute when she showed emotion like that. She nearly gulped when she realized she had just checked Faith out and accidentally spent a few seconds longer than she should have on the brunette's butt.

"Is everything ok?"

"Five by five, B."

"That what was with all the drama?"

"Yeah, being a drama queen is usually a Summers thing," Xander joked, only to receive a second punch and glares from both Summers' girls.

"So is the party still on?" Willow challenged.

"Yes," Dawn confirmed and continued when it looked like she was about to be interrupted, "Even Faith can't resist the 'Summers pout'."

The Scoobies then smiled at Faith.

"And we're still on about celebratin' a second time for beatin' The First," Faith replied.

"The s-second t-time?" Willow stuttered nervously.

"I know you celebrated already."

"H-How d-do y-you kn-know?"

"Call it a hunch," Faith divulged and kept going when it seemed that Buffy and Willow were going to say something, "And I get it….I do. It's just…It would have been nice if you could have waited until I was here."

Faith then let out a sigh. As much as she tried to, she couldn't completely hide the hurt.

"So…cake?" Willow asked to keep the upbeat mood they were in while preparing for Dawn and Faith's return to the hotel going.

"Sure," Faith consented.

"Then sit down here, birthday girl," Lorne suggested as he escorted her to a table they had set up earlier and surrounded with chairs, "Somebody, get the cake."

"I'll get it," Dawn offered and ran around what had been the hotel's check in desk.

She disappeared for a few seconds then reappeared with the cake with lit candles.

"Are you sure you want to be the one to carry that, Dawn?" Buffy teased.

"More sure than getting into a car with you behind the wheel," Dawn shot back with a smile.

After a giggle from the redheaded witch, Dawn carefully made her way to the table. She started the singing with everyone joining in immediately.

"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, Faith! Happy birthday to you!"

Although she played it cool, inside Faith was feeling a little choked up at how softly Dawn had sung to her.

"Blow out your candles and make a wish, sweetiekins," Lorne announced as the others smiled excitedly at her.

Faith slowly scanned the lobby before smirking at the Scooby gang and easily blowing out the candles.

"What did you wish for?"' the blonde questioned just as excitedly.

"Buffy, if she says it, it won't come true," her sister reminded her sarcastically before smiling at Faith, "You want it to come true, right?"

"More than anythin'. Well, almost more than anythin'."

This got the entire Scooby gang and Giles to arch their eyebrows at her even though they all had a rough idea of what she wanted. After each one of them got at least one piece of cake, the empty tray was taken to the kitchen. Faith watched curiously as present after present was set on the table. She smirked as she read each tag before opening them. She received more clothes, some of it leather. She smirked at Dawn's present, which turned out to be a big box filled with nicotine patches. The best came when the rest of the Angel crew had given her an IPod.

"It already has a bunch of music on it that you like, and room for more. It's just our way of saying happy birthday and thanks for what you did for us and Angel," Fred explained as Faith made her way to each of them and surprised them with a hug.

"This is wicked. Thank you."

"We're glad you like it," Gunn declared.

Then Lorne brought out a karaoke machine, sang the first song, and dedicated it to Faith. There were groans, laughs, and giggles when the demon began singing "It's Not Unusual" by Tom Jones. When he was done, he got Angel to be the next one to sing, with help from Faith.

"Come on, Angel, it's my birthday. And I want to hear ya sing."

"Fine," Angel conceded before breaking into a song Faith didn't recognize.

"Not that one," the brunette interrupted and added when the vampire just stared at her, "You know what I wanna hear."

When Angel acted like he didn't know what she was talking about, Faith began humming the tune familiar to the both of them. Lorne recognized it almost instantly and started to smile. The Scoobies began the laughter when they discovered he was singing "Mandy" by Barry Manilow. This was quickly followed by his friends and the rest of the Sunnydale team. They laughed harder when Faith got out her lighter and held it up like a torch.

"Could he have sung a lamer song," Xander taunted before laughing again.

He didn't seem to care that Angel was getting angry.

"Says the guy who once owned a limited edition Backstreet Boys lunchbox," Willow commented.

More laughter happened as Xander lowered his head in shame and peered down at the floor, making Angel smile a little.

"Who's the lame one now?" Faith taunted back as she got out of her chair and headed to the machine to take a turn.

They all watched curiously as Faith made her selection. There were a few cheers when she sang "Rock and Roll All Nite" by KISS. It got even better when the slayer acted like she was onstage at a real concert. The moves from Faith and the expression on her face got Robin, Buffy, and Dawn to pay special attention to her. The brunette was able to notice this and held back the urge to get closer to either one of the trio. After each one had taken their turn, the entire group went out to celebrate at the same club. Giles and Wesley joined them just long enough to have a few drinks and take part in pictures taken to remember this night.

Shortly after Giles, Wesley, Angel, and Robin had left the club

Since the rest of their group went to get another round of drinks, Buffy and Willow decided to have a talk.

"So do you think we made the right decision in not taking Faith back to prison?" Buffy inquired before smiling nervously at the redhead.

"I think so. I mean if we can forgive each other for the past, the least we can do is try to give Faith a second chance. If everything she's done since breaking out to help Angel is any sign, then it's possible that she has changed."

"Ok. I just hope this doesn't blow up in our faces. Like I said on the bus, I don't know if I trust her. But I think I want to try."

"Me too."

"So what's up with you and Kennedy? I mean is there trouble in paradise?" Buffy continued.

"What do mean?"

"Well, you two don't seem to be as snuggly wuggly since we got to L.A.."

"We're still snuggly wuggly. It's just that she's jealous of the time I've started to spend with Fred and wasn't too happy with how close Fred was in some of those pictures. It's like she's afraid one of us will make a move on each other if she's not around."

"But Fred's not even gay, right?"

"No, we just have the same interests. And she thinks I wasn't as into…You know…What we did not too long after we got here."

"You mean curing the double h's?"

"Yeah?"

"Is she right?"

"I'm not sure, Buff. Maybe a small part of me wasn't. Do you think the fear and danger of what could have happened in Sunnydale was what made it so intense? I mean now that it's gone that we'll last?"

"If my history has proved anything, it's that I'm not the best person to be giving advice about that."

"Since you brought it up, what's going on with you an Angel?"

"I…Well, it's just that them taking over Wolfram & Hart can only lead to bad, evil…stuff."

"So that's why he left so early and we're leaving as soon as possible?"

"Yes," Buffy sighed.

Before another word could be said, the rest returned with the drinks.

"Here ya go, B," Faith mentioned as she sat down to Buffy's left while Dawn sat to Buffy's right, "This should make that frown disappear."

"This isn't beer, is it? Because Buffy and beer don't go well together," Buffy replied.

"Give it a try. One can't hurt, can it?"

"If I go all cave girl on you, it's your fault," Buffy exclaimed before taking a sip.

"I think I would kinda like to see that," Faith confided before smirking at the smile on Buffy's face.

"That was magically tainted beer, Buff. I think you're safe. Besides, there's enough of us here if you go all, 'Buffy want beer.'"

"I'll remember you said that," Buffy told her best friend.

Most of the girls put away a few more drinks before deciding to dance.

"Come on, little Miss Tightly Wound, me and you are gonna have some fun since Angel and Robin left. Besides, we've earned it," Faith insisted as she grabbed the blonde by her left hand and began pulling her to the middle of the dance floor.

The Scoobies and the newbies watched curiously when their leader went without a fight. It got more interesting for them as Faith moved liked she had when she first arrived in Sunnydale and they had sneaked away after Buffy had left. The chosen two definitely attracted attention from the men around the club. The fact that Buffy appeared to actually be having fun encouraged her friends and her sister to join them. As the music continued to play, the blonde and brunette got closer and closer.

By the third dance, they were nearly touching with their lips about two or three inches apart. It was clear that both were feeling the heat inside them. Suddenly, Faith spun the blonde around and pulled her so that the only thing between them was their clothes. They were basically grinding against each other. Faith was definitely getting worked up at the feeling of the blonde's leather covered butt rubbing the front of her just as tight jeans. She wondered if Buffy was doing the same and decided to find out.

"You likin' this, B?" Faith whispered as her hands gripped Buffy hips in case the blonde decided she had enough.

"Kind of. I mean I'm not exactly being all avoidy."

Faith thought she'd take it a step further and began to nuzzle the right side of Buffy's neck with her nose before almost kissing the slightly exposed shoulder in front of her.

"You know you're possibly scarring me for life, don't you?" Dawn quizzed as she and Faith barely heard a slight moan from the petite blonde over all of the cheers and whistling from the male population.

Both slayers searched the crowd to see several people gawking at them, including their gang, and Dawn leaving to get another drink. Faith was worried that this would make Buffy pull away from her. It appeared to have the opposite effect though. That obviously surprised her.

"Don't stop unless I say so," Buffy warned as both girls smirked at everyone watching them.

"Got no problem with that," Faith determined as she dared to put her hands under Buffy's shirt, which managed to somehow become un-tucked.

This got the blonde to let out a moan that was slightly louder than the first. It shocked the blonde as well when she didn't mind Faith's hands on the skin just above the leather pants. She also didn't seem to care that Faith's head was no longer on her shoulder. She was having more fun than she expected to have with her former enemy. Faith had shifted her head to see Dawn talking to some guy. The guy and Dawn exchanged some words before facing them again. She caught the guy pouring some liquid from a vial into Dawn's drink as the teenager watched them. She instantly broke away from Buffy. The slayer got there just as the younger girl was getting ready to take a sip of whatever she was drinking. Buffy had sensed it the very second Faith had left and chose to follow her.


	7. Chapter 7

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 7

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: R

Summary: The gang hangs out at a club. While they're there, Dawn is saved by Faith again. Faith and Buffy have fun together that leads them back to the hotel.

Disclaimer: I own nothing,

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: Thanks for the review, Dorian Windslasher. I don't think what Faith did was whining, but I see how someone else could think so. I think it's all a matter of the tone used when speaking. We all saw Buffy do her share of whining on the show though. The characters might be a little off, but there's a reason. I want to show that they're trying to change a little in how they are toward each other. This will obviously have positive results. Faith will still be the flirty and occasional smartass that people liked. Moon FireStar, thanks for adding this to your alert list. Maybe you could leave a review too. In the spirit of the holidays, I decided to post this a few days early.

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><p>A few moments later<p>

"Don't drink that, Dawn," Faith ordered as she took the plastic cup away from the teenager.

"It's just soda. Are you jealous that somebody else is giving me more attention than you?" Dawn almost spat as she tried to grab the drink out of Faith's hand.

"What's going on here, Faith?"

"Your sister seems to think I'm jealous that this punk is givin' her more attention than me. That's not what's goin' on."

"Then tell me what IS going on. I was having fun with you out there."

"I was really enjoyin' it too. But Dawn's safety is more important right now. He spiked her drink."

"You don't know that." Dawn muttered during another failed attempt.

"I'll prove it to ya," Faith claimed before directing to the bartender while handing over Dawn's soda, "Ya might wanna call the cops. Hold onto this until they get here too. They'll want to know what's in it if dumbass here keeps his mouth shut."

"I don't have to take this. I'll just go find someone else. You can thank the brunette for blowing it for you."

Dawn frowned in anger at what was happening as the guy turned to walk away. "Not so fast; I've got somethin' to prove," Faith declared as she pushed him to the nearby wall.

"Faith, stop it! He did nothing wrong," Dawn argued as Faith held him in place with her left arm while reaching into one of his pockets with her right hand.

Buffy stood there silently since she wasn't sure whom to believe. They were joined by their friends as the guy struggled to get away from the now furious brunette.

"What's going on, Buff?" Willow and Xander quizzed at the same time.

"Just a difference of an opinion on whether or not Dawn's soda was spiked," Buffy stated as she continued to stand still.

"Stop struggling or you'll be sorry," Faith warned as she searched his left front pocket, "Well, look what we have here."

The Summers girls gasped and gaped as Faith pulled out a small, clear, empty vial. The bouncer showed up as Faith grabbed something out of his front right pocket. She lifted it up to reveal another small vial that contained a white substance.

"I believe there's enough coke in here to put you away for at least a few years," Faith assumed as two cops emerged among the customers.

The bouncer stepped aside so they could get their hands on the guy. As soon as one of the cops had their hands on him, Faith released her hold and stepped back beside Dawn. One cuffed the criminal while another started reading him his rights and leading him out of the club as he held the spiked drink in the now sealed plastic cup. The Sunnydale gang and the Angel crew stood there speechless as the other patrons clapped. The owner had quickly made his way to the stunned group and informed them that the rest of their drinks were on the house and thanked Faith repeatedly for the help. Faith simply smirked, requested another soda for Dawn, and dragged Buffy back to the dance floor. After another dance, Faith whispered into Buffy's ear.

"Me and you, your hotel room, now," the brunette demanded.

The blonde nodded silently; and with a few words, the couple was out the door and on the way to the Hyperion. When they got to the front of the building, Faith pressed the blonde to the wall and kissed her just like she had done during the group shopping trip. Instead of pushing her away, Buffy let her keep going and moaned again as the other girl's tongue came into contact with hers. Faith broke the embrace that the blonde had initiated just long enough to see that the lobby was dark. She quietly opened the door, scooped up Buffy into her arms, and stealthily made their way to Buffy's door.

"Hurry up, B," Faith commanded after setting the shorter girl on her feet.  
>"Alright, alright, keep your pants on until I open the door," Buffy mumbled before a hand groped her ass.<p>

She held in a yelp as the door unlocked. Then she yanked the brunette inside and quickly closed the door. Faith let Buffy do the same to her butt. After that, she didn't waste any time at getting Buffy's shirt off. She just as rapidly took off hers.

"Faith, I've never…," Buffy tried to say but was interrupted.

"The only thing I wanna hear outta ya is moans or you screaming out my name," Faith instructed as she picked up the blonde a second time before carrying her over to the queen size bed and tossing the blonde onto her back.

Buffy lay there and watched as Faith kicked off her shoes, took off her pants, and advanced toward her. Faith noticed that Buffy seemed to be in awe of her beauty by the way the blonde never spoke as she did the same to Buffy's clothes. Buffy checked out her upper body and opened her mouth at the sight of the scar on Faith's stomach. The scar she had caused when she stuck that dagger into the brunette. Faith stopped her from talking by placing a few fingers on the soft lips. Then Faith got on the bed and climbed on top of the other girl. She straddled the blonde's legs as she kissed her on the lips. She was able to get the blonde to open her mouth long enough to put her tongue in it. When Buffy tried to put her hands on Faith's back, the brunette didn't stop her. Faith began kissing her neck and groping her chest.

At seeing the girl below her arch her eyebrow, Faith got another idea. She let go of Buffy's chest, grabbed the hands on her back and used them to grope her own chest. Buffy gasped at the feeling of her hands on the brunette like that. After about a minute, Faith pulled her and Buffy's hands away from her chest and climbed off of her. Buffy gawked and gasped again at the sight of Faith taking off the rest of her clothes. The reaction made Faith smirk. Buffy had always thought the brunette was beautiful but seeing her naked was something else. Then she gulped as Faith spread the blonde's toned legs farther apart and got between them. When Faith tried to take off her bra, Buffy grabbed Faith's wrists and pulled them away.

"How am I supposed to make you moan or scream my name if your clothes are in the way?"

"Ok, but just the bra until I say so."

"Aight," Faith agreed as she helped Buffy take off her bra.

Faith smirked again as she gently ran her hands over the exposed chest below her, making Buffy let out a second gulp. It turned into moans when the brunette groped them with a little bit more pressure.

"UHHH…FAITH…"

"Yeah?"

"DON'T STOP! UHH!" the blonde moaned loudly before Faith's mouth moved to her chest and her hands gripped Buffy's hips.

Buffy let out small shrieks as Faith kissed and licked her chest. They got louder as Faith tickled it with her tongue, nibbled on it, and finally sucked on it. Buffy was so swept up that she didn't even notice Faith's hands had traveled down to her butt until she felt it being squeezed under the underwear.

"Faith..."

"I just wanted to know what it felt like to squeeze them without underwear in the way," Faith admitted before kissing the blonde's stomach and tickling it with her tongue, like she had just done to her chest.

"O-Ok," Buffy stuttered and sighed happily.

Buffy continued to sigh as Faith kissed her stomach. Faith felt the time was right to make another move or two. She kissed the blonde's underwear and gently grabbed the sides of it.

"Hey, B, can I take them off n…," the dark slayer began to ask then paused and growled at what she saw next, "You gotta be fuckin' kidding me! Come on, B, wake up. We can't stop now."

When she couldn't wake the slayer, she angrily got off the bed, put on her underwear, and searched for the rest of her clothes. Since her room was just down the hall, she debated on whether or not to put them on before leaving. The decision was made easier when she heard footsteps getting closer and Dawn singing something. She smirked as she peeked over her shoulder at Buffy, who was still asleep and lying on her back. For a few seconds, Faith thought about letting Dawn find Buffy like that. She changed her mind a little though and put the bra back on the sleeping girl. The brunette also noticed that the lighter had fallen out of one of the pockets on her jeans. She decided to leave it there and make sure she'd ask the blonde about it in front of everybody the next morning. She grabbed her clothes again, slowly opened the door, stepped outside the room, and started to close the door.

"F-Faith wh-what are y-you d-doing?" Dawn stuttered as she approached the slayer.

"Going back to my room."

"Why are you only in your underwear?" Dawn asked and paused as what could have happened immediately sunk in, "Faith, you didn't!"

Faith opened the door enough for Dawn to see her sister asleep and half naked while stretched out on her back before closing it.

"No worries, D. As soon as she passed out, I stopped."

Dawn gulped as Faith checked her out and paced toward her.

"Like what ya see?" Faith teased while Dawn backed up until her back was pressed toward the wall behind her.

"I…"

"What do ya say to the two of us going back to my room so I can finish what I started with your sister?" Faith whispered into Dawn's right ear as she put her left leg between Dawn's legs and added a little pressure as the rest of her body got extremely close to the younger girl.

"I…," Dawn murmured after letting out a second gulp.

"Think it over," Faith suggested as she stepped back to give the younger girl some air.

"Get away from her, Faith," Xander requested.

"I was only teasing her," Faith announced as she turned around to face him and saw that he wasn't alone.

"Really?" Willow questioned with an unbelieving glance.

"Really," Dawn replied as Faith backed up even farther.

Dawn wasn't sure whether she should be happy or disappointed when that happened and couldn't tell what the slayer was thinking as well. Xander, Willow, and Kennedy stood there and gazed at the brunette in possibly the most revealing underwear they had ever seen. Faith smirked back at them for a second before turning again and casually walking down the hall to her room.

"See ya in the morning," Faith concluded as she closed the door.

They didn't know what to say after that, so the foursome each went to their own rooms silently. As Dawn went to sleep, she thought about everything that happened at the club, outside Buffy's door, and what would happen when Buffy woke in the morning. Would Buffy freak, would she get angry and try to hurt Faith, and how would Faith react? She also tried to forget about the slight jealousy she had about what Faith and Buffy had done that night at the club and what could have happened if she had taken Faith up on her offer from about five minutes ago.

The next morning, around 10:00 AM, Buffy's room

Buffy awoke with a yawn and shuffled into the bathroom. She blinked as she turned on the light. She glimpsed into the mirror and had to do a double take when she saw that she wasn't wearing a shirt. Then the blonde looked down to see that she wasn't wearing any type of pants either. She began to panic as she tried to remember what happened for her to awake like that. As she sat down on the bed, she found her clothes in a pile to the right of it. It started to come back a little more now. She recalled how she and her sister slayer were dancing when Faith had gone to Dawn's rescue. She blushed at the memory of her and Faith taunting the men with how close they got to each other then how Faith had gotten her to moan with even more contact. She still couldn't figure out why she was only in underwear.

As she twirled around to return to the bathroom for a quick shower, she felt her left foot kick something. She searched the floor and found a cigarette lighter. After that, more came rushing back: the girls sharing a kiss outside the hotel, Faith telling her to hurry with the hotel key, more kissing, some clothes coming off, Faith straddling her while they kissed more, and the groping. She gulped at the memories that followed: Faith getting naked in front of her, her managing to get the blonde out of her bra, the attention the brunette paid to her bare breasts. She jumped off the bed at the final memories of Faith starting to do the same to her stomach as hands squeezed her butt and falling asleep. She wanted to blame letting it happen on the alcohol, but a part of her knew better. She was full of fear and anger at what Faith could have done after she passed out. Buffy rushed through her shower, got dressed, quickly left the room, and headed to Faith's room down the hall. She knocked three times before realizing that Faith was probably in the kitchen or in the basement that Angel had turned into a training room for the girls.

A few minutes later, the kitchen

Buffy entered the kitchen to find the entire Scooby gang, Faith, and Kennedy either eating breakfast, having a cup of coffee, or both. Faith was sitting on one of the counters while the rest were seated around a table.

"Good morning, Buffy," Willow greeted as she continued cooking eggs while her best friend reached for a coffee mug, "Would you like some eggs?"

"Morning, Will. Eggs would be great; thank you."

"Did you sleep well?" Xander said between spoonfuls of cereal as Buffy joined them and sat beside her sister.

"Yeah," Buffy sighed and tried to hide how uncomfortable she felt around the formerly rogue slayer, "Where is everyone else?"

"Giles is in the office and the other slayers are upstairs or getting some exercise. They might be either outside or down in the basement. Angel and company are already at Wolfram & Hart," the witch informed her while finishing the cooking and sitting beside her girlfriend.

Faith was still sitting on the counter and occasionally studied everyone at the table. Every so often, she would gulp down some coffee or eat the breakfast in front of her. She smirked as Buffy got up momentarily to dump the rest of the eggs onto a plate.

"I bet you did," Kennedy determined with a chuckle.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Buffy responded after frowning at the girl across from her.

"We saw Faith and Dawn talking outside your room last night."

"So they were talking. What's the big deal?" Buffy inquired before briefly eyeing Faith, who was now smirking at her.

"She was in just her underwear, so we guessed that something happened between you two," Kennedy added happily.

"Nothing happened," Buffy insisted as she glared at the girl and then focused on Faith after hearing a snort from the other side of the kitchen.

"Did you find my lighter in your room?" Faith challenged.

"Yes," Buffy admitted and kept going when they all gawked at her, "Don't you think that maybe she came into my room after I was asleep and left it there? Then made sure to ask me in front of all of you to make her story more believable?"

"Maybe if you two hadn't been all over each other last night," Kennedy mentioned after finishing up her breakfast.

"I know you're lying, Buffy," Dawn confirmed a moment later, "I saw her coming out of your room half naked and that you were just as undressed as she was."

Faith got down from the counter, put a few things in the sink, and asserted, "Well, I think I'm gonna go downstairs and work out for a little while."

The rest watched as their leader got up and followed her.


	8. Chapter 8

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 8

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Faith is thanked for saving Dawn a second time, their future plans are finalized, the Sunnydale team leaves L.A., and Dawn gets a year older.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: This contains the last of the _Angel_ crossover. I will go with both what happened in the comic books and what Andrew told Spike in the season five episode "Damage" in regards to their future plans. I will go with both what happened in the comic books and what Andrew told Spike in the "Angel" season five episode "Damage" in regards to their future plans. Ltlconf, thanks for leaving a review so quickly. Sorry to disappoint you, but Faith flirts with Buffy for the last time in this chapter. She becomes more focused on Dawn, obviously. Minamot3, thanks for the reviews to all of the stories in this saga and adding this one to your alert list. Kim9988, ReadingWolf, iliketurtlesctfxc, kid2150, and hk-mp5kpdw, thanks for adding this story to your lists. I hope you leave a review before this story is over. Twilight Warrior 627, thanks for adding all of the stories in this saga to your lists. I hope to get some reviews from you as well.

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><p>Buffy managed to catch up with her as the brunette reached the door to the basement training room.

"Faith, wait."

"What's up, B?"

"I just wanted to…Um, what happened after I…"

"Fell asleep?"

"Yeah," Buffy answered while gazing at Faith.

"Nothing between us if that's what you're worried about. I put your bra back on you, put on my underwear, grabbed the rest of my clothes, and left."

"You know the only reason we got all touchy feely and stuff last night was because we were a little drunk, right?"

Faith surprised her by pushing the blonde's back to the basement door with her left hand and whispered into her left ear, "Keep tellin' yourself that, B. We did what we did because we wanted it. We both know that if you hadn't conked out, you woulda felt me here in more ways than one."

Buffy gulped as Faith pressed her right hand on the front of Buffy's pants. She was too stunned to speak when the same hand moved to her crotch and switched to a cupping motion. The blonde bit her lip to hold in a moan as she felt the force of the other slayer's hand making her nearly stand on the tips of her toes. The brunette then leaned in to kiss her as well. The kiss got Buffy to open her mouth enough for Faith to slide her tongue inside. It only lasted about ten seconds. Both girls could hear the blonde breathe heavily after that.

"F-Faith, w-we c-can't d-do th-this h-here," Buffy stuttered at the feeling of her pants being unbuttoned with two hands.

"Why?" Faith questioned while her right fingers pulled down the zipper of Buffy's pants.

"Because we could get caught and…and…," Buffy muttered and gasped as Faith's fingernails grazed over her underwear.

"We could always finish upstairs or on the other side of this door. I could…," Faith suggested before being interrupted by the blonde.

"You could what?"

"I could…," Faith began and described the next part in a whisper while her right hand slid into Buffy's pants and cupped her again.

"F-Faaiith…," Buffy replied as she grabbed Faith's wrist with both hands but didn't stop her.

"Or I could…," Faith added and finished in another whisper.

"Faith, please stop!"

"Because you wouldn't want them to know you'd liked it."

"I don't want to get caught," the blonde murmured before she pulled Faith's hand out of her pants and buttoned and zipped them up.

"So another time then?" Faith teased after Buffy stepped away from the door.

"Yes…I mean no. It's never going to happen between us. What happened last night shouldn't have happened. I guess we just let it get way out of hand. Do you understand?"

"Yes. It would have been amazin' though. Think it over, ok?"

"What about what they said in the kitchen?" Buffy quizzed as she ignored what the other slayer had said and nodded to the kitchen.

"They were tellin' the truth."

"Why didn't you put on the rest of your clothes before leaving?"

"Cause my room was just down the hall, and I thought I had time to get there before the rest of your friends and sister got back. I guess the lighter fell out of the pocket out my jeans."

"Now who's lying?" Buffy accused at the smirk from the other girl.

"Ok, maybe I wanted them to know that little miss perfect could do somethin' like that. Angel was right about what he said about ya years ago."

"And what was that?"

"One thing I learned about Buffy; she's always so cute when she's sleeping," Faith quoted from her memory.

Buffy attempted to speak but was interrupted this time.

"Somethin' else you wanna say, B?"

"Yeah, a few more things."

"What?"

"Why did you do all of that before I stopped you?"

"Because I like the reaction I get out of you when I do stuff like that. I also know that a little part of you liked it too. Not that you'd ever admit it. If you hadn't, you would have stopped me as soon as I started; but you didn't. What's the other thing?"

"Thank you," Buffy said honestly, making Faith smile for a second.

"For…"

"For saving Dawn again last night. I'm sorry we didn't believe you."

"No problem," Faith assured her as she held back a second smile before kissing Buffy suddenly on the left cheek, opening the door, and closing it behind her.

Ten mutes later, the hotel lobby

Giles and the Scoobies rounded up everyone, except Faith, for an impromptu meeting.

"I'll go get Faith," Dawn offered.

"No, I can get her," Buffy responded.

"Let me. I need to thank her for last night at the club," Dawn pleaded and reassured her at the expression of concern on her sister's face, "I'll be alright, Buffy, I promise."

Buffy let her go but still showed the same amount of concern.

"She'll be alright, Buff," Willow tried to convince her as Xander nodded along with the redhead.

Buffy mumbled into her ear and waited for the redhead's reaction. Willow agreed and quickly recited some words in Latin before strolling with Buffy in the direction of the basement. Xander got up and chased after them. When he saw where they were going, he trailed after them silently. The rest watched them leave and stared at each other in curiosity.

Another few minutes later, the basement/training room

Faith was busy hitting the punching bag with a variety of kicks and punches when she heard the door opening.

"Who is it?" Faith called out since she couldn't sense who it was for some unknown reason.

"It's Dawn."

"What do ya want? I'm kinda busy here."

"I just wanted to…"

"Talk about last night?"

"Yeah."

"So talk," Faith encouraged as she went back to hitting the bag and keeping her back to the younger girl.

"Could you turn around so you can see me when I'm talking to you?"

"Ok," Faith relented with a sigh before turning around and placed her hands on her hips.

"That's better."

"So?" Faith commented after a long enough pause from Dawn.

"I wanted to…to thank you for helping me out at the club. I'm sorry I didn't believe you and thought you were just jealous."

"Ok, but I'm not the one who got jealous last night, was I?" Faith chuckled.

"Jealous of whom, you and Buffy?"

"Not me and Buffy, just Buffy."

"What are you getting at?"

"That you wanted to be the one dancing with me like that."

"No, I didn't. Don't you think I could have been a little uncomfortable seeing you two like that?"

"Look me in the eyes and tell me that ya didn't want to be in Buffy's place."

When Dawn couldn't and was caught peeking at the scar on Faith's stomach as the slayer stretched a little, Faith smirked and spun around to prepare in hitting the bag again.

"Are we done?" Faith grunted after throwing a punch.

"Not yet. I also came down here to tell that Giles called a meeting for all of us."

"Give me a minute," Faith requested before wiping the sweat off her skin and gulping down some water.

"Ok," Dawn consented and waited on the bottom step for the slayer.

"What gives?" Faith groaned when the younger Summers didn't move.

"Can I ask you something?"

'Sure, it doesn't mean I'll answer it though."

"Never mind," Dawn grumbled after seeing the expression on Faith's face and noticed the tone she used.

"Dawn, wait," Faith advised as she sat down on the second to last step, "I'm sorry I kind of snapped at ya."

Dawn sat beside her and spoke, "Why did you turn on us back in Sunnydale years ago? We were your friends."

Faith nearly scoffed and answered, "NONE of you were my friends. Your mom was cool and all, but she only liked me because she thought I could take over for B. Xander only acted like he liked me because I'm hot, and so he could hear all my slayer stories. Oz didn't seem to care either way. Willow acted cool but got jealous cause B started hanging out with me more than her. B got jealous cause she thought you all started liking me more than her. Giles clearly liked her a lot more than me. Angel was too in love with ya sister to try at first. You had a crush on me or idolized me whatever. It was kind of cute at first. Then it got annoyin'. And don't even get me started on Cordelia. And yeah, I got a little jealous of you and B. It was only because ya two had so much, and I only had the slayin'."

"That's not completely true."

"YES, it is. I came to Sunnydale to meet the famous Buffy Summers. I thought I'd find someone who would treat me like an equal since we were both slayers. What I found was a stuck up, tight ass blonde that lied. She said she didn't like slaying, but I got her to admit that a small part of her liked it. I could see it her eyes. I wasn't treated like an equal. Never mind that the prophecy considered me 'The Slayer' since B and Kendra had both died. I was treated only like backup. None of ya ever thanked me for ANYTHING! Before helping Angel, the only time I was thanked was when I saved a girl during the body swap. I was never invited to those so called 'Scooby meetings' that Miss Post talked about. She reminded me that I couldn't trust anyone. B and her friends talked about how they tried to be friends with me, but they didn't try that hard. I knew the Mayor was evil, but at least he made me feel needed. That I wasn't just back up, and that he actually cared. Oh, and killin' Finch pushed me over the edge of sanity. That's why I turned on all of ya."

Dawn showed hurt and shot back, "If we were so bad then why did you call Angel a friend yesterday and save me last night?"

"The reason I called Angel a friend when Robin and I got here was because he's been there for me when nobody else was. He still thought he could help me. He was the first one I apologized to. It was him that helped me decide that I wanted to make it up to all of ya and to take responsibility for what I did. So I turned myself in to prove it. The reason I saved you is because I couldn't let the same thing happen to you that happened to me."

Dawn gawked at Faith, who groaned softly after that revelation, and yelped, "WHAT?"

Faith sighed and explained, getting Dawn's full attention.

"When I was around twelve and my mom was passed out drunk, one of her asshole boyfriends came into my bedroom and woke me up. I tried to fight him off, but he was too strong. He ripped my clothes off and raped me. It hurt so bad."

"How could that happen? Where was your dad?"

"I never knew him. He skipped out on me and my mom shortly after I was born. She blamed me for him leavin'. That's why she never loved me and barely cared. She didn't believe me when I told her I was raped. She was drunk most of the time. I never got any presents on my birthday or at Christmas time. While you and Buffy had parties, Mom was already drunk or getting drunk, and I was either in my room or out on the streets. When I became a slayer, I was gone. My first watcher let me crash at her place during the night."

"Why didn't you tell any of us this?" Dawn choked out as tears were fighting to get out at the same time.

"I ain't the type for sharin' feelings and all that crap, especially with people I don't trust. NOBODY cared enough to give me a head's up when The First declared war on the slayer line."

"Then why are you telling me now?"

"Cause yesterday was the first time any of you thanked me for somethin'. Well, not counting the time B claimed that she was happy I came back before the battle with The First."

Before Faith could stop her, Dawn burst into tears and collapsed onto the brunette. Faith wasn't sure on what to do. She kind of liked the feeling of Dawn that close to her, but the crying was making her uncomfortable. When Dawn looked at her, Faith gently wiped away the tears with the nearby towel. Dawn smiled at her. Suddenly, an invisible force seemed to draw them closer together. Their lips were less than an inch apart when they both immediately pulled away.

"I…We…," Dawn murmured before Faith cut her off.

"We should get upstairs before they come looking for us."

"Yeah," Dawn agreed as she stood, "Faith?"

"Yeah?"

"Even if the others don't trust you again or turn their backs on you a second time, I'll be here for you."

"Don't make a promise, ya can't keep."

"Just give me another chance like I am going to do for you."

"Ok."

Dawn didn't see that Faith had checked her out again as she climbed the stairs and grabbed the doorknob. Meanwhile, the Scoobies had spied on the conversation thanks to Willow. The spell in Latin had blocked Faith from sensing them nearby and let all three of them hear the conversation clearly. They switched between being angry, regretful, and curious. When Faith had revealed about her dad never being around and being raped, Buffy and Willow let the tears come. Willow had even softly whimpered, "B-Buffy!" The tears didn't stop until they heard Dawn cry. At hearing the girls agreeing to come upstairs, Buffy and Willow almost ran to the nearest bathroom. Xander simply marched back to the lobby.

After giving Faith enough time take a shower and get changed into some other clothes, Giles started the meeting. They affirmed that Robin, Faith, and some of the slayers would go to Cleveland and guard the hellmouth there. The rest would go to Scotland where Giles had acquired property to be used as possibly temporary headquarters for the new Watcher's Council and a training facility/school for the newly awakened slayers. When things were running at least a little more smoothly, some of the Scoobies would split up. Willow and Kennedy would head to Brazil, Xander would travel to help in rounding up some of the new slayers to be sent to Scotland, and Buffy and Dawn would take a vacation Buffy declared she earned. After the slayers got in some more training, they all packed up and relaxed until nightfall. The slayers then got in a final patrol of L.A..

The following morning, around 9:00 AM, the hotel lobby

Everyone began saying their goodbyes to the team assigned to Cleveland. They exchanged hugs and handshakes. When it came time for Faith to say goodbye to Dawn and Buffy, it got very quiet.

"I guess this is goodbye, B."

"Not forever, Faith. Here," Buffy declared while handing the brunette a cell phone, "Keep in touch, ok? It has all of our cell phone numbers in it already."

"Wicked," Faith exclaimed before putting it in her pocket and giving the blonde a handshake.

"I think you mean, 'Yes, I will.'"

"That too," Faith announced with her trademark smirk.

They watched silently as Dawn bit her lower lip and hugged Faith for a few seconds. Then Robin, Faith, and the small group of slayers left the rest standing there in the lobby. Buffy and Willow took a few minutes to say goodbye to Angel and his team before exiting the hotel as well. As the door closed, Angel sighed. About ten minutes later, the last five headed to Wolfram & Hart.

Sunday, June 22nd, Dawn's birthday, rural Scotland

Dawn was sleeping peacefully and dreaming about Faith when an excited blonde entered the room.

"WAKE UP, DAWNIE!" Buffy shouted as she jumped onto the bed, waking up her now aggravated, younger sister.

"What the hell, Buffy?" Dawn griped as she sat up and examined the clock by her bed, "It's only 8:00 AM. I thought we got to sleep a little later on the weekends."

"Why so grumpy? It's your seventeenth birthday."

"I know what day it is, thank you. Now get out."

"Why?" Buffy asked as her sister closed her eyes and tried to get back to sleep.

"Because I want to see if I can get back to that dream I was having before you barged in."

"Oops, sorry. Was it a good one?"

"Duh."

"So which guy were you dreaming about this time; was it Matt Damon again?"

"Yes," Dawn growled to hide the fact she had been dreaming about Faith instead.

"Well, get cleaned up, changed, and come downstairs for a special breakfast."

"Is everyone still coming for the birthday party?"

"I think so; you've missed them already, huh?"

"I know it's only been a couple of weeks; but when you see people on a daily basis, you get used to having them around. And when they aren't, you can start to miss them."

"I know. So can I expect to see you downstairs in around twenty minutes?"

"Yeah," the younger girl claimed before grabbing some clothes and heading to the nearest bathroom.

Dawn had been dreaming about the brunette for the past three days. Each dream seemed to end too fast in her opinion. Every time it started to get the slightest bit intimate, the alarm clock would wake her. She would have to lie to hide the fact her feelings for the brunette were getting stronger. They felt like the beginning stages of a crush. She knew this because of her past crush on Xander and the one that stopped after Spike attacked Buffy. She had never felt this way toward a girl before, and it made her curious. Was this only because Faith had saved the younger Summers twice in such a short time? Some times she thought it was. Other times she wasn't sure. Another thing she wasn't sure of is if the previously rogue slayer could ever feel the same for her.


	9. Chapter 9

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 9

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: R

Summary: The gang celebrates Dawn's birthday and finds out the current status of some relationships.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them.

Author's note: Satsu makes her brief appearance in this and the following chapter. She isn't exactly secretive about her feelings to a certain blonde. Ltlconf, thanks for another quick review. Even though it was unsigned, it's clear that it's from you. Most of your questions regarding the future couple will be answered within this and the next few chapters.

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><p>Around 9:00 AM; Cleveland, Ohio; United States<p>

As the gang in Scotland was passing time until it was late enough to contact the team in Cleveland. Faith and Robin were fighting over the status of their relationship.

"What else can I say other than it's over, Robin?" Faith asked as she stormed into the kitchen.

"You can tell me why. I thought things were going great between us."

"They were. I mean we had a lot of fun getting to know each other, slaying vampires and other demons together, not to mention the post slayin' sex. But you just HAD to say those words. I mean really, who tells someone that after only a month?" Faith said and turned her head to look at Rona after hearing a groan, "Don't you start, Rona. I've seen the guys you've hooked up with and even heard you a few times."

"I thought he was showing you how not all guys are bad?" Rona questioned before scooping up another spoonful of cereal.

The other slayers decided to keep their mouths shut on the argument and kept eating their breakfast.

"He was."

"Then what's the problem?"

"He told me he loved me or was at least starting to when he woke up this morning."

"I agree that it's too early to hear that. But I think he means it. I mean the only times I hear it is when the guy wants sex."

"See, that's why my motto 'Get some, get gone.' still works."

"I'm sorry I said it so soon. Can't we just forget I said it and stay the way we are?"

"NO! You just can't say something like that and quickly take it back. And you can't expect the other person to just forget it. What did you want me to say? That I love you too. That someday we'll start makin' plans to get married, for me pop out a kid or two, and become a soccer mom while you continue following in your mom's footsteps?" Faith inquired sarcastically.

When Robin didn't say a word, Faith continued her rant.

"You were. Sorry to disappoint ya; but I ain't the motherin' type, not now…probably never."

"I would never ask you to give up slaying if you didn't want to, but someday I can see myself married to you. Just because you had a bad mother, it doesn't mean you will be one."

Robin realized instantly that he shouldn't have said that, which was obvious to everyone in the room due to the gasps from the other girls.

"DON'T YOU EVER SAY THAT AGAIN! I TOLD YOU TO NEVER MENTION HER!" Faith yelled after slapping him hard on his left cheek.

Another round of gasps was heard from the girls, including Faith. Everyone gawked at him as the slap was hard enough to turn his head to the right. For a few seconds, the girls weren't sure what he was going to do next. When he could only stare in shock, Faith quickly left the room and headed for the basement. She managed to hear part of what was said before closing the door.

"You should know better than that. I don't see Faith as the type to fall in love," Rona announced with a small smile.

"Are you joking?"

"Maybe a little," the slayer revealed with a small laugh.

"I think you're wrong. She can. She just needs to find the right guy," Robin argued.

"Maybe it's too early, or maybe you're not the right guy. Or possibly it's not a guy she'll end up with," the newbie slayer, Rebecca, claimed between bites of cereal.

"What are you saying; you think she's gay?" Robin challenged as they heard the door to the basement almost slam shut.

"Not gay, more like bisexual. I just got this feeling that she plays for both teams," Rebecca explained a few seconds later.

"I don't think you know what you're talking about," Robin insisted.

"What, you have gaydar detection in your blood or something?" Rona chuckled.

"Not really, I know from experience."

"You mean you're…"

"Bisexual?"

"Yeah."

"I am, and she didn't get mad when she caught me checking her out while she was training us."

Robin, Rona, and the other slayer, Christy, gaped at the confession.

"What? The girl has a cute face and a hot body. I'd love to see what sex would be like with her since you wouldn't tell me the first time I asked and she might brag a little."

While Faith attacked the punching bag downstairs, the girl with hair dyed pink and known as Christy, got up, put her bowl and silverware in the dishwasher, and walked to the bathroom. Robin went into the family room and turned on the TV. As Rona and Rebecca got up to do the same as Christy, they heard the phone ring.

"Hello?"

"Rona, It's Buffy. Are you all coming over for Dawn's birthday party? Will's going to teleport the gang with the help of a coven in Devon, England."

"I don't know about all of us. I think some are going to stay here."

"Oh," Buffy sighed.

"It's nothing personal, Buffy. It's just because Rebecca, Christy, and a few other slayers you've sent here thought that a few should be guarding the hellmouth. Plus, they really don't know Dawn that well."

"Well, that's what parties are for, right?"

"Yeah, but I think they're pretty sure they don't want to come. Maybe another time."

"What about you, Robin, and Faith? Dawn really wants you three over here. I think she misses you already."

"I will," Rona agreed with a smile, "But I'm not sure about Robin and Faith after what happened."

"Why, what's wrong?"

"Uh, I shouldn't have said anything. I'll let them explain when we get there. How soon do you want us there?"

"Well, it's about five hours earlier there, so be ready around 1:00 PM your time."

Downstairs in the basement, Faith was thinking to herself.

_What the hell is wrong with me? For the first time, somebody probably means it when they tell me they love me, and I end it. Am I really incapable of falling in love?_

This made her think back to the first time she arrived in Sunnydale many years ago. Buffy had stirred up feelings in her that no one else had been able to do. At least until she got tired of the superiority kick the short blonde seemed to be constantly on.

Four hours later, the Watcher's Council headquarters and slayer training school in Scotland.

Rona, Faith, and Robin arrived outside the castle and stood in awe at what they saw. After a door opened, they smirked at the sight of the entire Scooby gang, Giles, Vi, and some girls they hadn't met yet standing in the doorway or coming outside to get a better view of their visitors. After the trio hadn't made a move yet, Dawn came forward and stopped almost right in front of them. The anxious teenager said hi to each one of them before capturing them in a hug.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Dawn stated after stepping back a little.

"WOW!" Rona and Robin exclaimed.

"Definitely cool, but I was kinda expectin' a drawbridge and a moat," Faith announced and smirked at Dawn, "Oh, happy birthday, D."

"Thanks."

"Yeah, happy birthday," Robin and Rona chimed in.

The trio followed while the younger Summers made her way back inside. Faith hid that she felt Dawn had somehow gotten even hotter within a month. As Giles, the Scooby gang, and Vi either hugged or shook hands with them, they could sense the tension between the older two. This could mean only one thing in their minds. The two were no longer a couple. It made them sad that yet another relationship in their group couldn't survive. They chose not to say anything about it as they made the introductions.

"Faith, Robin, and Rona, we'd like to introduce you to a few new slayers. This is Kiera, Phoebe, Dianna, and Satsu. The rest are around here somewhere."

Faith smirked at how the new girls observed her with a combination of fear and awe.

"How many have you got here right now?" Rona quizzed

Buffy was trying to think of the right amount when Dawn answered, "Forty."

"Damn, B, that's more than back in Sunnydale. Where do you keep them all? I didn't think that many could fit in here even though it is kinda big."

"Well, we get a steady flow of girls in here. It seems like every week more come while others leave for other hotspots or home. They stay just long to learn how to control their powers. Then they go home. In fact, some are leaving tomorrow."

"They must be running you ragged," Robin guessed.

"Well, Vi has been helping me train them. And Kennedy had while her and Willow were living here," Buffy confirmed before appearing regretful that she brought up the brunette's name in front of her best friend.

"Where's Kennedy? I assumed she'd be attached at the hip with Red by now."

"Not here," the redhead snapped loud enough for them to hear before she stalked off.

"Whoa, trouble in lesbian paradise?"

"Not now, Faith," Buffy ordered sharply.

"Why, what happened?"

"They've been fighting off and on since leaving the United States," Dawn declared without a trace of sorrow, "In fact, they were fighting earlier today; that's why Kennedy's back in Brazil."

"I bet Red will find someone else soon," Faith assumed in what she hoped sounded sincere enough.

"So how about a tour?" Dawn offered casually.

"Cool," the three stated at the same time.

As the sisters led the tour with Satsu trailing beside them, the slayers caught how much attention was being paid toward their leader. Satsu would glance at her when she knew the blonde wasn't noticing. Since the last one had been at Buffy's butt, both Faith and Rona smirked. Dawn peeked over her shoulder at that very moment and caught Satsu ogling her sister. She sighed and looked further back at the other two girls. The trio shared an expression of comprehension at what was going on with the newbie. When the tour was over, they gathered in a room that was occupied by most of the newbies, the rest of the Scooby gang, and Giles. They saw multiple cakes and pizzas on the tables and a few large coolers filled with ice and various drinks, and a small stack of presents against a wall. Faith placed one down beside them and mentioned that it was from the three of them. Dawn smiled as she was directed to the table where the cake with lit candles sat. They sang to the happy teenager before Dawn did a search of the room that ended with her eyes briefly on Faith. She smiled at the brunette before blowing out her candles. The smile had caused every Scooby and Faith to arch an eyebrow at her.

After everyone had filled their stomachs on pizza and cake, they dumped all of the trash into three big trash cans. They watched as the birthday girl eagerly opened each present, saving the present Faith had set down for last. She smiled as it turned out to be a leather jacket similar to the one Faith had worn a few times. Dawn thanked everyone. A lot of the slayers left to go back to their rooms or to the training rooms after being introduced as well. The gang got caught up on what had been happening in their lives. They all learned that Willow and Kennedy were on the verge of breaking up, that Robin and Faith had, where the sisters were going on vacation before Dawn finished her education, and that Dawn was contemplating on what to do after that. She had thought about becoming a Watcher or more into actually fighting demons from the training she had gotten from Buffy and a few other slayers. However, the details of Willow's eventual breakup were more shared than Faith and Robin's. As they were trying to think of another topic, Willow received a phone call from her girlfriend.

"What do you want, Kennedy? I thought we decided to take a break from fighting and us for one night? YOU DID WHAT? How could you? I don't care about either of that. We take a break from fighting and each other for a night and you do that? No, I never thought about that. You know what? It's over. We're through. I expect you gone when I get back. GOODBYE, BITCH!"

Everyone around Willow gasped loudly. They had never heard the redhead shout that loud or heard her use that word that often.

"What happened, Will?" Buffy asked carefully since she saw how angry her best friend was.

"Kennedy got drunk and cheated on me with some slut."

"Damn, Red, you really have bad luck in the love department, don't ya?" Faith sort of chuckled, "Maybe you should try my motto for awhile."

"SHUT UP, FAITH! YOU'LL NEVER FALL IN LOVE, SO YOU'LL NEVER UNDERSTAND HOW I FEEL RIGHT NOW!"

"I was just kiddin'. I thought it might help to calm ya down."

"How's making a joke about my love life supposed to calm me down? From now on, keep your mouth shut about stuff like this."

"No problem," Faith assured as Dawn briefly arched her eyebrow while the rest didn't do anything or just sighed.

They all watched as the redhead marched away from them and out of the room, with Buffy glaring at Faith before chasing after her best friend. Faith then decided to kick the party up a notch by turning on some music and dancing. She had only danced for about two or three minutes when Buffy and Willow returned. They all noticed that in the extremely short period of time, the redhead's attitude had done an almost one eighty. When a second song began to play, the rest of them almost immediately joined in. With help from Willow, Buffy held back at seeing Faith and Dawn dancing together almost as provocatively as she had done with her former enemy. It got more interesting as Satsu asked Buffy to dance with her and Buffy agreed. The two danced almost as close as Faith and Dawn had. When they discovered how late it was, they ended the party. They offered to let the three crash there instead of being teleported back to Cleveland. Faith had an idea of her own though. She was able to convince Buffy to send a different slayer back with Rona and Robin. She'd stay in Scotland and help train the other slayers while Buffy went on her vacation. It had originally shocked the Scoobies that Faith gave up the job of guarding a hellmouth. But after seeing the slightly cool interaction between the former couple that night, they went along with the decision. The yawn Dawn had let out encouraged Faith to offer to help her to bed. Dawn accepted quickly, but not without a warning from Buffy.


	10. Chapter 10

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 10

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: R

Summary: Dawn and Faith realize their feelings for each other are getting stronger. Faith is the first to question herself on if she wants them to get stronger. The Scooby gang and Faith are surprised in the morning after Dawn's birthday.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Reviews: I would like them Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: This chapter is rated R because the people responsible for the surprise are caught in a more revealing position than in the season eight comic books. Also, I edited the timeline for "Our Love" to go along with this story. I originally said that the first started two years after "Chosen". Now, it will be about half that time.

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><p>A few minutes later, Dawn's room<p>

"So do all of you have your own rooms here?"

"Not all of us, Just Giles and the original Scooby gang, Xander helped with remodeling the inside so the others share rooms like they're in a college dorm or an army barracks."

"That's cool I guess. So what's up with that Satsu chick? How long has she had her sights set on B? And does B have any idea?"

"Pretty much since day one. I think Buffy knows Satsu likes her. I just don't know if she can tell how much."

"How long has she been here?'

"Around a couple of weeks. She's a quick learner, and Buffy seems to think that she could make a good leader after we're finished setting up teams around the world. The spell Willow cast had to have some consequences. Apparently, it increased demon activity around the world to make up for the growing number of slayers."

"Ok, so uh…where am I sleeping?"

"I think all of the beds are taken in the other rooms. So if you want to…you can crash here."

"Thanks, got a sleeping bag?"

"The bed's big enough for the two of us as long as you don't try anything."

"'Whatever ya say, D."

"Good, now turn around for a minute."

"Why?"

"So I can change for bed."

"Aight," Faith relented as she turned around to grant the other girl's request.

Faith smirked quietly when she spotted a mirror on the wall and glimpsed long enough for a view of Dawn from behind. She nearly licked her lips at the sight of Dawn only in her underwear. She quickly focused on a different wall to be on the safe side.

"Ok, you can turn around now."

"Cute pajamas," Faith complimented at the sight of teddy bears printed all over them, making Dawn blush.

"Would you like to borrow some?" Dawn offered.

"No, I'm good," Faith claimed before she kicked off her boots and took off her jeans.

She walked with a slightly seductive swagger on her trip to the bed. Then she slowly climbed under the covers. She smirked at how the younger girl had almost ogled her and gulped at the sound of her jeans hitting the floor. Faith teased her by patting the space to her left before lifting up the covers to make it easier for the other girl to join her.

"I…I need to go brush my teeth. I'll…I'll be…right back."

"Ok," Faith replied as she watched Dawn basically run from the room with a small bag in her hands.

"So you two are really starting your vacation tomorrow?" Faith began after Dawn returned and cautiously joined the brunette in bed.

"Yeah, you can use my room while we're gone if you want to."

"That'll be great. Thanks, D."

"You're welcome."

"Where do ya plan on going, and how long will ya be gone?" Faith asked as she moved a little closer to Dawn.

"I think we're going to go check out some places we never got to go to back home then some other European countries like Spain, France, and Italy."

"Keep in touch, ok? Maybe send me a postcard or two."

"S-Sure," Dawn stuttered as Faith leaned in to kiss her.

Faith smirked at how nervous the other girl was getting the closer she got. Dawn closed her eyes and held her breath but exhaled as she felt soft lips touch her forehead. Before she opened her eyes, she felt those same lips caress hers.

"F-Faith wh-what d-did y-you th-think y-you w-were d-doing?" Dawn stuttered again.

"I was kissing you. I've done it before."

"But why?"

"Because I like seeing how you react when I do stuff like that. B seemed to get a little bit more distracted or whatever when I would do that to her."

"Could you not talk about doing that with my sister when I'm around?"

"Sure thing, but you don't have to worry about that anymore."

"Then you're not going to be hitting on her from now on?"

"Yeah, so did you like it? Me kissing you I mean."

"It was…nice." _Nice? Come on, you liked it more than that._

"Good to know. Well, goodnight," Faith asserted as she thought the same thing.

"Goodnight," Dawn echoed as Faith laid her head down on a pillow and closed her eyes.

"You want somethin', D?" Faith questioned after sensing something and opening her eyes to find Dawn gazing at her.

Dawn answered by kissing her just as quickly and softly as Faith had done to her. Another smirk from the brunette got Dawn to blush as she lay down beside her and closed her eyes for the night. Before doing the same, Faith turned off the light.

The next morning, about 8:00 AM, Dawn's bedroom

Dawn awoke first and discovered arms wrapped around her and a body pressed up against her back. She opened them all of the way when she remembered who it was. The brunette had snuggled up against her from behind in their sleep. She didn't know what to do at the moment. It felt both odd and comforting at the same time. The grip the slayer had on her seemed more protective than casual. That even in her sleep, Faith wanted to protect her.

She knew she should be getting up soon. She glanced at the alarm clock to see it was about to go off. The worry of Faith being awakened by the alarm clock and Buffy catching them like that forced her to try and get out of the hold the older girl had on her. She somehow was able to get out of it without moving too much or making noise. The very second she stepped out of bed, the alarm started going off. Dawn tried to shut it off as soon as she could, but Faith was already getting up into a sitting position. She opened her eyes and stretched.

"Sorry, I woke you. I mean I'm sorry the alarm clock woke you," the nervous teenager apologized.

"It's cool. Did ya sleep well?"

"Yeah. I'm…going to take a shower. Buffy and I need to be leaving soon."

"How soon?"

"In about an hour."

"Oh," Faith mumbled in a disappointed tone.

"Something wrong, Faith?"

"Yes…No…I mean maybe."

"Which one is it?"

"It's just that I liked that you did keep in touch after I went to Cleveland and you came here, and it wasn't all about demons. It's like you actually missed me."

"I did," Dawn declared.

"Really?"

"Yeah, don't sound so surprised. You can be really cool when you want to be. I can also tell you're trying to make up for what you did in the past and be our friend."

"I am."

"And I know that we may never be BFF's or friends with benefits. I mean except for the kissing we've already done. Not that I'm saying I want to have sex with you. Or that either one of us is either gay or bisexual. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I mean Willow's gay, and she and Tara were lovers. I mean I know the kisses we've shared were just to see how the other would react. The point I'm trying to make here is that I like that we're getting a second chance to be friends," Dawn babbled and finished with a blush.

The blush got worse for Dawn when she saw that Faith was smirking at her.

"Wow, D. That was some serious babbling. You could have matched Red in a babble fest with that one. And since you kinda brought it up, I'm going to tell you something nobody knows."

"What is it?"

"I'm not exactly completely straight."

"WHAT?" Dawn yelped before Faith could cover her mouth with her hand.

"Not so loud, ok? I have experimented with a few girls. I just didn't make it a habit."

"Wow. I didn't see that coming. So, uh, how far did you get with them? I mean did you…you know?"

Faith answered after another smirk, "I didn't have sex with them. I only kissed one. And with the other one, we both got in some gropin'."  
>"Over the clothes or under?" Dawn blurted out before she could stop herself.<p>

"Under," Faith revealed after a momentary pause.

"Wow."

"Yeah, don't you have a shower you need to be getting into right now?"

"You're right, I'll be back soon. Maybe we can have breakfast together," Dawn announced as she made her way to the door.

"Aight," Faith agreed and added as Dawn was opening the door, "Dawn."

"Yeah," Dawn responded as she twirled around.

"It wasn't the alarm clock that woke me. It was you getting out of the hold I had you in."

"Oh," Dawn sighed, "How did they get around me anyway?"

"Actually, I was going to ask you the same question."

"Why would I know?"

"Because I woke for a few moments when I felt you wrap my right arm around you. I assumed you were having a nightmare of some kind, so I wrapped the other around you and got as close as I could. Did you have a nightmare?"

"I…I don't think so," Dawn lied as the dream she had came rushing back.

"You're lying," Faith responded after studying the expression on Dawn's face. She continued as the younger girl hesitated, "Come on, tell me. I promise to not make fun of you or tell anyone else."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Ok," Dawn conceded before describing the dream.

Faith continued smirking as Dawn kept talking. In the dream, the moments before they went to sleep went a little differently. After Dawn had commented on the kiss from Faith, the slayer had kissed her again. However this time, Faith had pinned her wrists to the bed before giving her a more intense kiss. Faith had pulled away shortly after that. When Dawn had remained quiet, the older girl began to slowly unbutton the pajama top, starting at the bottom and working her way up. She hadn't stopped her and gasped as Faith's fingertips caressed her skin. It didn't stop there either. Faith had gently pushed the sides of the top back, exposing the bra underneath before kissing the soft skin. She had started at the top this time. The smirk from the slayer had gotten bigger at hearing that Dawn didn't stop her from unbuttoning the top. The dream ended seconds after Faith had teased her by tickling the teenager's belly button with her tongue before lying down and going back to sleep.

"If you want to, we make that dream a reality." Faith teased as she got off the bed and walked over to the younger Summers.

"I-I d-don't th-think s-so," Dawn stuttered while gazing down at the floor in front of her.

"Maybe another time then?" Faith offered as she used her right hand to lift up Dawn's head to look her in the eyes.

"May…," Dawn voiced lightly until realizing what she was saying and abruptly left the room.

Faith chuckled as she put on her jeans. She liked having Dawn in her arms and was a little bummed when it was over. The possibly of what this could mean began to worry her. The first time a guy said "I love you." to her and possibly meant it, she broke up with him. He was a nice guy, and she rejected him because she didn't feel the same way. She thought that maybe they were right about her never falling in love. Then this somewhat innocent girl started unintentionally messing with her head. Now she had to rethink the whole idea of whether or not she could fall in love. The only one that had come close to that in the past was a short blonde, who just happened to be the sister of the girl currently messing with her head.

Faith had waited for the younger girl, who returned around ten minutes later in a different set of clothes. The two shared a smile before making their way down the stairs to the dining room. When they reached the room, they saw that the only ones not there were Buffy and a few slayers. One of the missing ones just happened to be Satsu.

"Hi, guys," Dawn greeted them cheerfully while Faith trailed behind her at a safe distance.

"Hi, Dawnie," Willow said in a better mood then she had been in after her breakup with Kennedy. Dawn groaned when the redhead spoke to the girl behind her in a cold tone, "Hello, Faith."

"Hi, Red," Faith called out casually.

"Where's Buffy?" Dawn questioned to draw attention away from the witch and the slayer.

"I don't know. I haven't seen her since she was dancing and drinking with Satsu last night. I warned her about not drinking too much beer even though it couldn't have been tainted."

"Uh, Satsu isn't here either," Xander interrupted, "You don't think that she…That they….you know…hooked up?"

"Well, there's only one way to find out," Faith insisted with a smirk as she suddenly spun around and ran the way to Buffy's bedroom.

Xander, Willow, and Dawn were following very close behind her. If Faith had instantly stopped, Dawn would have crashed into her. When they didn't hear anything, they motioned for Dawn to be the one to knock on the door.

"Buffy, Are you awake?" Dawn inquired while she knocked as requested. When they didn't hear anything the younger Summers knocked again and spoke at a slightly louder volume, "Buffy, are you in there?"

The Scoobies were getting worried, but Faith was thinking that Xander was possibly right for a change. The thought of the Japanese girl obsessing over the blonde actually getting somewhere with her made the brunette smirk as big as she had during Dawn's babble fest.

"Step aside, D," Faith ordered as she stepped up to the door and slowly opened it, "Yo, B, you alive in here? DAMN!"

"OH MY GOD!" Dawn yelled after what she was seeing sunk in, which was followed by Willow immediately closing the door behind them.

The shock of seeing their leader naked in bed with another girl was definitely justified. Buffy was on her back with the covers not entirely over her. Slightly over half of her chest was hidden, but the rest of the covers were lying in diagonal angle. So her right leg and crotch were also hidden while she was totally exposed on the left side from her hip down to her foot. Satsu was lying on her left side and holding covers to her body just enough to expose her entire back and half of her butt. The shouts from Dawn and Faith had shaken Buffy and Satsu from their sleep.

"It's…It's not what it looks like," Buffy explained poorly after making sure she was covered enough before sitting up, "And why didn't you knock?"

"We did," Dawn confirmed, "You just didn't hear us."

"So then you two didn't have sex, you just wanted to see what it would like to sleep naked together with a girl?" Faith nearly taunted before breaking down into a laugh that was shortened by a light smack to her right arm from Dawn.

"Yeah," Buffy stated before glancing at the girl beside her, who was just as covered as her.

The blonde then let out a small groan when Satsu just sighed.

"Honestly, Buffy, just admit that you were curious about what it would be like," the redhead demanded.

"Ok, I was curious. Can you leave it alone right now? I need to get ready to leave, and Satsu needs to get dressed as well."

When her friends were gone, the blonde and the newbie had a talk.

"This isn't going to happen ever again, is it?"

"I'm afraid not."

"Then it's best that I leave," the Japanese girl determined as she got out of the bed without taking any covers with her.

Buffy felt the regret of using the talented newbie like that and hoped she could be forgiven.

"Satsu."

"Yeah," she murmured as the blonde approached with the comforter covering the front of her body.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you. Can you forgive me?"

"Yes, I guess I was crazy to think that this could ever be more than what you told your sister and friends."

"Don't get me wrong; it was amazing. I will never forget it."

"Me too. You were pretty amazing yourself, whether it was your first time with a girl or not."

Buffy leaned in and placed a light kiss on the lips in front of her and moaned softly when a tongue made its way into her mouth. The moan got a little louder when hands gently grabbed her butt.

"SATSU!" Buffy exclaimed as she broke away from the now smiling girl.

"Sorry. It's just that if this is it between us, I wanted to touch you once more," Satsu confessed as she pulled Buffy up against her and concluded while taking Buffy's left hand and placing it on her own butt, "And for you to touch me."

Both girls turned to give the other some privacy as they got dressed. Satsu took a risk and spied over her shoulder long enough to get a peak at the naked blonde from behind. When they were finished, they left the room to join the rest of the group.


	11. Chapter 11

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 11

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: This is the rest of what happened in the morning after Dawn's birthday, and Buffy and Dawn tell the group in Scotland something important after their two and a half months vacation.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's note: I get the idea of what I have Buffy and Dawn tell them from the _Angel_ season five episode "Damage". Let me know what you think of the speed I'm having the two girls go toward each other in their growing relationship. Konga, thanks for adding this to your alert list. I hope to see a review soon, that you check out the rest of the stories in this saga, and possibly leave a review for those as well.

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><p>Around 9:00 AM, the dining room<p>

The only ones left when Buffy entered was the Scooby gang.

"Well, Buffy, you look…relaxed," Xander said nervously and received giggles from Willow and Dawn.

Buffy just glared at him for a few brief moments before cracking a smile.

"Where's Faith?" Dawn asked with concern, "I…"

"Who cares?" Willow snapped, interrupting Dawn.

"I do. I was hoping to say goodbye to her before we leave," Dawn explained calmly.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I need to get some breakfast before we leave. Is there anything left, Will?"

"I whipped up some for you after we caught you…with Satsu."

"You're never going to forget that, are you?"

"Nope, not for awhile anyway," Xander replied before receiving more glares.

Willow smacked him in the chest as the sisters walked into the kitchen to grab the food. They returned a few minutes later and sat down next to their friends. Everyone remained silent until both Summers were done.

"Will, can I ask you for a favor?"

"Sure, Buff, what's up?"

"Before you go back to Brazil, do you think you could…teleport Faith's clothes over here? I mean if she's going to be staying here while we're gone for who knows how long, it would be nice for her not have to wait too long for something else to wear. I know she's not your favorite person right now, but it would be a nice thing to do."

"When has she been?" the redhead spat, shocking her best friends with that outburst but angering Dawn.

"I agree with Will here, Buffy," Xander chimed in while Buffy acted unaffected in front of the other three at sensing Faith getting closer.

"Both of you, shut up!" Dawn ordered as she stared at Willow and Xander. Willow looked hurt while Xander looked confused. Dawn continued when it got quiet, "Did you already forget what you talked about with Buffy on the school bus that day, whether it was vocally or telepathically? You said you wanted to give her an opportunity to earn your trust and have a second chance to become her friend since it didn't seem to work too well the first time. How do you expect that to happen if you're constantly ganging up on her? History will just repeat itself, but without the killing."

"But, Dawnie, she said…"

"I remember what she said, Will. I believe she was being honest when she was just kidding in the hopes of calming you down. It's not like she's the first to make a mistake during an attempt at humor," Dawn reminded them before pausing temporarily and directing all of her attention to the only guy in the room. Then it went back to the witch, "If she apologizes, will you accept it?"

"If it's truly sincere," Willow informed before sighing.

"And don't forget she saved my ass twice before we even left Los Angeles."

Faith had heard the entire conversation from the moment the sisters came back into the dining room until Dawn's last statement. She expected what she heard from the older three but was sincerely touched by the youngest member defending her. Faith thought to herself as Dawn talked about being saved. _She means her sweet, virgin, jailbait ass. _Faith quietly and swiftly moved back to the stairs. Then she headed to the dining room loud enough for them to hear her. She heard Dawn warn them that she was coming and quickly thought about what to say when they saw her again.

"Good, ya haven't left yet."

"Nope, Dawn wanted to say goodbye. And so did we…right?" Buffy responded.

"Sure," her friends stated unconvincingly, making the blonde gaze back in a disapproving expression.

"I mean yes we do," Xander spoke more cheerfully while Willow smiled hesitantly.

"Cool, I kind of wanted to say something to the four of you too."

"What is it?" the redhead questioned with the same amount of hesitance.

"I wanna apologize for how I said what I said last night after you broke up with…you know. I honestly meant it as a joke. I can see now how it might not have come off as well as it could or should have. If it means anything, I think you should consider yourself lucky."

"How so?" Willow challenged suddenly.

"At least you've had a lot of people really care about you. I never had that until Angel and Robin. That's if you don't count the Mayor. And after some time in prison, I stopped counting him. I think you will find someone, Red. It might take some time, but you're still young and hot too. Just because you have some rough times it doesn't mean ya should stop tryin'. I may never fall in love," Faith told her and stopped for a second to chuckle, "But it doesn't mean I'll stop tryin' either."

"Did Faith Lehane just make a joke about her and love?"

"I guess so, B."

The rest smiled when Faith smirked. But once again, Dawn sensed something else was going on in Faith's head.

"Ouch," Dawn squeaked almost loudly as she put her hand over her heart.

"What's wrong, Dawnie?" her sister questioned with concern.

"It felt like something or someone hit me, but I don't see anything."

"I ain't sayin' a word about that because I wasn't even close to her," Faith claimed, making the rest of them smile.

"What did you want to say to me?" Xander cut in.

"I can tell you're still hurting a little bit about what happened to Anya. I know she was an ex-demon, but she was still pretty cool though. When you're ready, I think I know someone who would be interested."

"Who?" they all gasped.

"Vi. I've seen her checkin' ya out. Just be careful since she can kick your ass."

"Uh, Faith."

"Yeah, Red?"

"I apologize too. Before I leave, I'll teleport the rest of your clothes and anything else of yours that needs to be, so you won't have to wait for anything."

"Wicked," Faith told her before surprising both Willow and Xander with very brief hugs. Then she whipped around to face the sisters, "Now for you two. Buffy, ya don't need to worry. Vi and I will whip the rest of the slayers here and any others that show up into lean, mean, slayin' machines."

"That's great."

"I'll make ya proud, B. Dawn, I promise your room will still be in good shape when you get back. Both of ya keep in touch, aight? I'm gonna find the rest of the newbies and Vi so we can have a trainin' session. Then Vi, Giles, and I can decide who's going on patrol and other stuff."

Before either girl could say another word, Faith hugged them as well. Then with a wave and a smirk, the brunette disappeared.

"Who the heck was that?" Buffy declared before laughing.

"The new and improved Faith," Dawn guessed with a slightly beaming smile.

"I guess so. I just hope this one sticks around for awhile," Xander commented as he made sure all the bags they needed were there, "Are we ready to go?"

His best friends held back a giggle at him apparently missing how Dawn was smiling at where Faith had stood less than a minute ago. Willow teleported all of Faith's possessions to Dawn's room in the castle. The four of them gave each other hugs before leaving themselves.

September 6th; around 10:00 AM, Scotland time; the Watcher's Council headquarters/ slayer training school.

Buffy and Dawn returned from their two and a half months vacation well relaxed and happy. But Buffy could see that despite the happiness, her sister was a little worried.

"So did you have a good time with me showing you the world?"

"Yeah, didn't you?"

"Definitely. But you're worried about Faith?"

"Yes, aren't you?"

"Actually, I'm not. Giles said he's seen the way she's become 'Take Charge' girl.

I'm curious to see how right he is."

"Me too, but…"

"But you think she's not going to like what we have to tell her, I mean all of them."

"Yeah," Dawn confided as she attempted to be alright, but Buffy sensed something else.

"Do you have a crush on Faith now?"

"What? Of course not," Dawn denied, "But I think of her as a friend. I mean we talked frequently while we were here and she was in Cleveland and during our vacation. And I even sent her a few postcards."

"Ok, so you're not crushing on her, but you care about her?"

"Yes. If someone's your friend, you normally care about them. It's just…What do you think she's going say or do when she finds out we're moving to Italy?"

"I think she'll be glad to see us and that we trusted her. As for Italy, I think she will be happy for us."

"But it's going to be hard to become really good friends if we're too far apart to hang out with each other frequently."

"Well, it's not like we'll NEVER see her again. We can always get together during the holidays and birthdays, ok?"

"You're right."

"One more thing, Dawnie."

"What is it?"

"I know you just said you're not crushing on her, But I don't think it would be a good idea to start crushing on a girl who will possibly never fall in love," Buffy mentioned before she giggled a little.

"You think that's funny? That someone could never fall in love?"

"What are you getting upset about? You said you're not crushing on her and Faith even joked about it."

"I don't think it's funny. I think it's sad."

"Maybe, but I still think you shouldn't get involved with someone who could break your heart if you were gay or bisexual. She broke Robin's. And she's probably straight."

"Let's go find everyone," Dawn muttered as she walked away from her sister.

"Promise me, Dawnie, no falling in love with Faith."

"I promise," Dawn vowed but could already tell that it could happen anyway.

About five minutes later, the girls had found Giles in his office and followed him to the training room where the girls would most likely be. They entered silently and watched closely as the brunette gave out commands like a drill sergeant, just as Kennedy had done in Sunnydale but without the trash talk. It surprised them that Faith had chosen words of encouragement instead of insults. The Summers girls spun a little to glimpse at their mentor. They hadn't seen him smile like that in awhile. They turned their attention back to the girls. As Faith was commanding the girls, Vi was getting prepared for a sparring session. A few seconds later, the girls shifted at one of Faith's demands and noticed the two girls behind Faith. They instantly came to a halt.

"I didn't tell you to stop. So why did you?" Faith argued.

It was answered when the girls silently indicated for their leader to look behind her.

"Yo, B and D, when did ya get back?" Faith asked as she hugged Buffy, "I thought you'd be gone for another couple of weeks. Ya know, round it out to about three months."

"About five minutes ago," Buffy confessed while Faith broke the hug and focused on her sister, "The school Dawn will be going to starts up in a little under two weeks. It gives us just enough time to do everything we need to before then."

"Ok," Faith stated and admitted during the hug she shared with Dawn, "I missed ya, D."

"What about me?" Buffy questioned curiously.

"You, not so much," Faith smirked and continued at what she assumed was a sort of fake pout on the blonde's face, "Just kidding. Everyone, these beautiful girls behind me are Buffy and Dawn Summers."

Buffy and Dawn weren't too sure about what to say at several girls gawking and gasping at them.

"What have you been telling them, Faith?" Buffy almost growled.

"That you used be a stuck up, tight ass with no sense of fun, unless it involved shopping of some kind," an unknown slayer announced without a second thought.

Before Buffy could respond, she heard laughing all around her. She scanned to see Giles, Dawn, Vi, and some of the new girls laughing. She glared at the girls and Faith. Faith shook it off, but it shut the newbies up and slightly scared a few of them.

"Anything else?" the blonde requested.

Dawn and Buffy smiled as a blonde about a few rows back timidly raised her hand like she was in a school classroom.

"What's your name and what did she say?"

"My name's Tina, and sh-she s-said y-you w-were the l-longest l-living s-slayer s-so f-far and th-that y-you l-led the f-fight against The First."

The smile Buffy let out got rid of the fear the girl had shown.

"And that she kicked it with the both of you," the first girl cut in with a smirk.

"Kicked it?"

"You know…hooked up. She said that both of you were like animals in the sack."

"WE NEVER HAD SEX WITH HER!" Buffy yelled in anger before glaring at Faith, who was laughing loudly, "What are you laughing about? Lying like that isn't funny."

"Geez, chill, B. I only told them to say that when you got back because it would rile you up. I know that little fling you had with Satsu was just out of curiosity. And I'm pretty sure your little sister is straight. But then again maybe she's bi-curious too."

"Yeah, Buffy, calm down," Dawn agreed.

"Did she really say that?" Buffy directed to the girls behind Faith, who all nodded simultaneously at her.

"What's your name, little miss smart ass?" she demanded from the girl who had spoken without saying her name.

"Kelly," the African-American girl asserted.

'Well, KELLY, I advise you wait awhile before you make remarks like that."

"I've been around here for almost three weeks."

"She's right, B. I warned them that only I could be the resident smart ass though. It's one of the rights that come with being a leader. Kelly, give me twenty push ups NOW! Megan, watch her and count to make sure she does them all."

Buffy and Dawn were stunned by how the snap of Faith's fingers immediately got the girl and a slightly taller girl with blue and green streaks in her hair to do what Faith had told them.

Faith whipped around and replied in excitement as they heard Megan counting, "I'm so loving this, B. I totally get it now when Ken said that this kinda stuff got her worked up and made the sex with Red so hot."

"Seeing you all 'take chargey' is kind of sexy," Buffy described before she could stop herself.

This brought several gasps and complete silence.

"You really think so?" Faith prodded and smirked when all Buffy could do was blush.

"What do you think, D?"

"I a-agree. Hey, I just noticed something."

"What's that?"

"When we came in, you weren't talking like you normally do."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're saying you more often than ya and adding g's at the end."

"Oh, well, I decided that if I was going to lead, I should try to speak more correctly. Do you like it?"

"Yes, but you can still talk like that to me occasionally. I kind of like hearing it sometimes."

"Sure thing. Is there anything else before I let Vi lead the sparring session?"

"Yes. We have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"

"It doesn't matter, yo," Faith relented as she winked at Dawn.

Buffy giggled at how now Dawn was the one blushing.

"Ok, the good news is that if you want to keep leading the girls here, you can."

"And the bad news?" Faith inquired reluctantly.

"Buffy and I are leaving," Dawn divulged a little sadly.

"Leaving?" Faith gasped, "Does this mean you're quitting slaying?"

"No, it means that Dawnie and I are moving to Rome, Italy. We really liked it. I will still slay, but Dawn's going to finish high school and decide what she wants to do with her life. Hopefully, it's something away from the supernatural."

"Oh," Faith sighed before facing the other girls again, who were standing around and listening to the trio talk, "Kelly, you still have five more to do. Megan, make sure she does them. The rest of you are dismissed to go to where Vi is for a sparring session. Megan and Kelly will join you after Kelly's done. Nothing too rough, we only want to see how much you have progressed since you've been here. They're all yours, Vi."

Giles and the sisters watched as the redhead waved them over to the mats.

"Where are you going, Faith?" Dawn quizzed as Giles and Buffy waited for her response.

"I'm going to get something to drink and go up to my room…I mean Dawn's. I want a few minutes alone."

"What's up with her?" Buffy added and looked at Giles when Faith shuffled away after that.

"I have no idea," Giles insisted while heading to his office with Buffy following him.


	12. Chapter 12

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 12

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Dawn and Buffy say goodbye to the gang in Scotland before moving to Italy. It's also the first half of the Scooby gang getting together for the holidays

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: Since the Scooby gang wasn't a big fan of the United States holiday, Thanksgiving, I will skip over it and go straight into the Christmas and Chanukkah holidays. I saw that the Jewish holiday has been spelled many different ways, so I went with that particular spelling. I mean no offense to anyone of the Jewish religion who reads this. Konga, thanks for the review. It won't be the last time Dawn defends Faith. EN666, thanks for the review. I hope you're still liking it by the time you get to this chapter.

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><p>A few minutes later, DawnFaith's bedroom

When Giles and Buffy left together and Faith headed to the kitchen, Dawn went up to the bedroom. What she found surprised her a little. The room was spotless, their clothes were nicely separated from each other, and there were two picture frames on the wall. In the larger one were most of the pictures from the second celebration. There was an entire group shot, some of her and Faith, some of Buffy and Faith, one of Dawn and Buffy, one of Buffy and Willow, one of just the original Scoobies, and a few other various pictures. The smaller one contained a few pictures of Dawn's birthday party. Dawn had a big smile on her face in each of them. Then she saw a bottle of the perfume she used sitting on the dresser. She felt a warm sensation in her heart and stomach. Maybe the older girl was capable of more than they originally thought.

"What are you doing in here? I mean I know it was your room first, but for the last few months it's been mine."

"Well, I needed to get my clothes, and I wanted make sure you didn't mess up the room. Even though you promised you wouldn't."

"Ok."

"Was that your idea?" Dawn guessed as she pointed to both frames.

"Yeah, I mean yes. I thought you'd like a memory of your first birthday outside of the USA."

"What about the other one?"

"Well, that one's for me actually," Faith confirmed as she sat down on the bed, "But I can make one for you if you want."

"I would like that. I think Buffy would too. We could hang it in our family room."

"Great," Faith muttered before gulping down some water.

"And what about the perfume? It's the kind I use."

"I know. You smell nice when you wear it, so I thought what the hell. I'd try some."

"Faith, are you ok?" Dawn questioned at seeing Faith gulp down some more water.

"You know me, D, five by five."

"I don't believe you. Talk to me," Dawn pleaded as she sat down beside the brunette.

Faith got up, peeked outside, and then closed the door before joining the teenager on the bed, "What do you want to know?"

"The truth about why you've shared things with me that you haven't with the others, what you're hiding when the others say that you'll never fall in love, and why you're acting the way you are right now."

"Fine, I'm going to miss you. We've gotten close enough to call each other friends without it being a lie. You were the first to try since Angel. You defended me against your sister and the other Scoobies before you left on your vacation…"

"You heard us?"

"I heard every word. Thanks for doing that. Robin was the first person to tell me he loved me that probably meant it, and what did I do? I broke up with him. I broke up with a great guy because I never felt what he felt. I keep wondering what's wrong with me. That's what I hide that only you can see. I like that we can joke around easier than I ever could with B. The few times we kissed were simply because we wanted to see how the other girl would react for fun. You've been the first I can trust since Sunnydale. When you leave, we won't get to hang out anymore and it could affect our current friendship."

"It won't, I promise."

"If you say so. Would you like help in packing the rest of your stuff?"

"The rest of the clothes and some other stuff, but if you're going to be living here you should keep the furniture. We can get some in Italy."

"That's nice of you, D."

"You're welcome, and you can call me Dawnie if you want to."

"Ok, but only when it's the two of us. I got a rep to protect here, you know."

"Sure," Dawn consented and added when she spotted the patch on her right arm just above the tattoo, "Oh, Giles told us how hard you've been trying to quit smoking. How's it going so far?"

"I'm almost through that whole box. But I have been able to cut back on even the patches. I think maybe in a week or so I can be down to one or two a week."

"That's really great," Dawn complimented her with a sincere hug.

The girls almost kissed before Dawn realized what she was about to do and pulled away. Faith acted cool about it, but inside she wanted the kiss. The next five minutes were spent packing up Dawn's clothes and a few other things. Dawn almost ogled Faith's butt as the older girl took the smaller frame off the wall. Faith was grateful that her back was to the other girl at the moment. Dawn couldn't see the pain she was feeling at that time. She made sure she got herself under control before she faced the teenager.

"I'm going to miss you, too, Faith," Dawn declared as she started pacing toward the door and kept talking when she noticed Faith was standing still, "Are you coming? I think you should be there when we say goodbye to everyone else. So you can say goodbye to Buffy."

"I'll be there in a minute," Faith assured her.

Dawn left the room silently. When she was almost out of her hearing range of the bedroom, she heard something that scared her. She jumped at the sound of breaking glass, a soft scream, and Faith talking to herself. Half of her wanted to turn back and go check on the brunette while the other half forced her to go join the others. What she didn't know was what was going through Faith's head while she was alone in the room. While Faith was alone, she had stared at the picture frame. The pictures of her and Dawn seemed to be taunting her as the words, "It won't, I promise." repeated over and over in her head. Faith had been doing a good job controlling her temper around everyone, but the minute of imaginary taunting got her to rip the frame off the wall and throw it to the floor while letting out a soft scream. She considered it lucky that only the glass was broken with how it hit the floor. She then criticized herself for the outburst. She calmed down and vowed to herself to clean up the mess as soon as the sisters were gone.

About two minutes later, the entryway of the castle.

Faith arrived to everyone saying goodbye and hugging the sisters.

"You made it," Buffy exclaimed happily, "I thought you would have been the first to tell me goodbye," Buffy teased with a smirk that Faith still found a little sexy to this day.

"I had to help D pack then straighten up a little after that."

"Alright, You and Vi take care of these and any other girls that come here, ok?"

"You have my word, B, that I'll try my best."

"Good to know," Buffy concluded as she accepted the hug she got from her former enemy and now friend.

"Remember what you said upstairs, D."

"I will," Dawn complied as her hug with Faith lasted a little bit longer than the one the slayers had shared. "Come over and visit sometime. You can even crash at our place."

She was sure that both felt the heat caused by the hug.

"Remember what?" Buffy interrupted.

"That our friendship won't change after we move."

"Ok. Dawn's right, you should come visit us."

"You mean it, B?"

"Yes, maybe we could even go on patrol together one night."

Everyone else watched silently as Faith smiled and the Summers girls left the castle on their way to Italy. That very night, Faith had dreamed about Dawn. They were alone in Dawn's bedroom in Italy. They had made love, not had sex, according to Dawn. Dawn had told her she loved Faith afterwards and sealed it with a kiss. Faith couldn't say it back. It was clear from the tears that followed, how quickly Dawn had gotten dressed and hollered for Faith to do the same before kicking her out of the apartment half dressed that she had broken the younger girl's heart. She sat up in a sweat for a few seconds then cried herself back to sleep. As she had cried, she had thought about telling Buffy to get someone else to take over her job in Scotland and join a slaying squad farther away than Italy was. It pained her to think of that dream becoming a reality. It hurt as much as when her own dagger was pushed into her stomach by that same girl's older sister. She thought that others would call that justice of the ironically poetic kind.

A week later, Xander had escorted a handful of newbies to Scotland and accepted a date with Vi. Faith had directed a few jokes toward them that got the couple to laugh and shrugged it off when they made jokes about her never falling in love. After the couple went out on the date, Faith held back tears while tossing back a few beers. She had thought about the younger Summers off and on since the move. It made her both happy and scared when she realized that her feelings for Dawn were growing. Happy because it meant that maybe she was capable of falling in love, and bad because it was Dawn that made her feel that way. She knew that with her history that something could go wrong, and that dream would become a reality.

Thursday, December 25th, Christmas Day/Chanukkah, Buffy and Dawn's apartment in Rome, Italy.

Shortly after getting into a daily routine in Rome, Buffy and Dawn planned for Giles, Faith, the original gang, and their significant others to join them to celebrate the Christmas and Chanukkah holidays with them. However, only two of their group only had brought someone along with them. Giles had brought Olivia while Xander brought Vi. Xander and Vi had hit it off and were now a couple. He had moved back to Scotland and now shared what was originally his room with the redhead. The rest of the Scoobies were happy for him because it was the happiest he'd been before the whole marriage mess with Anya.

Meanwhile, Faith's infatuation with Dawn worried her so much that she had almost turned down the invitation to celebrate with them and stay on the hide-a-bed in the Summers' apartment. It had taken a small amount of pleading and a pout from Dawn before she caved and agreed to both. She knew that she and the teenager were on a collision course toward each other. There was a very slim chance of neither of them getting hurt emotionally. And that possibly she could be hurt physically if she would be the one responsible for their downfall. Buffy would definitely make the other slayer pay.

Around 8:00 AM

"Faith, get up. It's Christmas. You have to get up right now." Dawn advised as she excitedly jumped onto the couch, which had been pulled out into a bed, beside Faith.

"I know that, D, but why do I have to get up right now?"

"Because the rest will be here soon."

"How much time do I have?"

"The others will be getting here around 9:30 AM and it's almost 8:00."

"That's a whole hour and a half," Faith argued as she shot up into a sitting position and growled as she held her head with her hands, "OW!"

"Serves you right for drinking so much alcoholic eggnog and beer. What about that great slayer metabolism or constitution you and Buffy would always talk about?"

"She has a point there, Faith," a cheerful Buffy chimed in from the hallway, "how many cups did you have?"

"I kind of lost track after the fourth or fifth one," Faith griped and continued, "I didn't do anything crazy or embarrassing last night, did I? Like offer any of you a lap dance or make any other type of move?"

"No, you were pretty tame considering how drunk you got," Buffy described, "I'm going to go take a shower. You and Dawnie can decide by yourselves on who gets to go next."

After they heard the door close and the water be turned on, Dawn suggested softly, "We can give each other a kiss. Whoever breaks it first, for any reason, loses and has to go last."

"Really, that's how you want to settle it, with a kiss?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Aren't you worried about big sis catching us?"

"Not really. Besides, that didn't stop you last night," Dawn explained and smiled at a confused and nervous Faith.

"We kissed last night?"

"Kissing is putting it a little mildly."

"But B said I didn't do anything."

"She doesn't know, or she does and is waiting for the right time to say something."

"What did I do?"

"You came out of the bathroom after downing your fifth cup of eggnog. You asked me to show you my room because you hadn't seen it yet. I began to show you the room when you closed the door. You said that you liked it and smiled at how I had that birthday collage frame in my room and that the other frame looked good on the family room wall," Dawn paused long enough for both of them to gaze at the frame on the wall across from where they were sitting at that moment, "Then I said how I never really thanked you that much for making both of the collages and asked how I could thank you."

"What I did I say?"

"That you'd settle for a kiss. We started to kiss and ended up on the bed."

"And?"

"This is the result of that," Dawn revealed as she pulled the collar of her shirt to reveal a purple mark on the lower right side of her neck.

Faith gasped after blinking and whispered, "Anything else?"

"You tried to grope me and let me grope you."

"Where?" Faith choked out as she backed up a few inches away from Dawn.

"On both of us?"

"Yeah."

"You tried to touch my butt and put your hands under my shirt, both front and back."

"I'm REALLY sorry, Dawnie."

"It's ok, Faith. You didn't try it again after I stopped you."

"Ok, good, but what did I let you do?"

"The same thing you wanted to do to me."

"So then the only ones who know about this are the two of us?" Faith assumed as she quickly checked to see if she was wearing a bra, and saw she was. Dawn giggled at watching this.

"It was over the bra even though you offered to let me go under it. So are we going see who can last the longest?"

Faith brought her in for a kiss. It was only a matter of seconds before they opened their mouths and deepened the kiss.

"Alright, you win," Dawn said after regretfully pulling away to get some air.

"Yeah, I'll save you some hot water if B doesn't use it all up."

"That would be nice. I mean about you saving me some."


	13. Chapter 13

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 13

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: This is the second half of the Scoobies celebrating the holiday season together.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: Konga, thanks for reviewing so quickly. I'm glad you liked the make out time between Dawn and Faith, but I'm also sorry if the description wasn't enough for you. I don't plan on describing it again. Hopefully, descriptions for any future moments like that will be good enough for you. EN666, I want to thank you for reviewing so quickly as well. I'm glad you're loving it so far. I hope it stays that way until the end. kmt513, thanks for adding my story to your alert list. Maybe you could leave a review before it's over.

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><p>Dawn was leaning in for a second kiss when Faith stopped her. She explained that it was because she heard the water be shut off, so that it could be a matter of minutes before Buffy came out. She didn't want to risk the blonde catching them and freaking out. Dawn backed off and sighed after she heard the bathroom door open three minutes later. The older Summers questioned them on who was next while she stood there in a bra and pants. Faith informed her that she was, got out from under the covers, and strolled to the bathroom in just a tank top and boxer shorts. The brunette then told Buffy it was safe to come in if she needed to dry her hair because she couldn't be seen behind the shower curtain.<p>

Faith and Buffy talked about various things while Faith showered and Buffy dried her hair. Buffy stopped and closed her eyes for a few seconds because Faith had finished before she was done and wanted to get out. Faith quickly wrapped a towel around herself and left the room. She let Buffy know she was leaving by lightly smacking the blonde on her butt. The yelp got Dawn to run to the bathroom door. She got there in enough time to see Buffy glaring at Faith and Faith marching to Dawn's bedroom. After the bathroom was vacated by Buffy, Dawn closed the door, stripped down, and got in the shower. She was happy that Faith had kept her promise by the fact that her entire shower was in warm water.

Around ten minutes later, the Summers' kitchen

Dawn was finishing up when Faith knocked on the door and asked if she could come in to dry her hair. Dawn quickly wrapped a towel around herself and dashed to her bedroom so she wouldn't suffer the same fate as Buffy. But it didn't stop her from blushing at the whistle she got from the slayer. After Faith was done, she headed to the family room. She grabbed the sunglasses she had laid down on the end table and put them on before sitting down at the kitchen table. The bright light was bothering her due to the slight hangover that she had.

"Who's that playing right now?"

"That's The Smashing Pumpkins singing, 'Christmastime'. Do you like it?"

"It's alright."

"I'm glad you like it. We weren't sure if you would. Want something to drink, preferably non alcoholic?" Buffy giggled as she guessed that other slayer liked the song by the growing smirk.

"Yeah, what do ya have?"

"We've got orange juice, coffee, or water."

"I'll have both juice and coffee."

When Faith didn't budge from her seat, Buffy questioned, "Would you like me to get that for you?"

"If ya don't mind."

"Ok, just no smacking me on the butt."

"No promises, B."

Buffy ignored that and poured both for her. She gently set the glass of juice and coffee mug down in front of the brunette. She couldn't tell what the girl was looking at behind the sunglasses but noticed the trademark smirk was still on her face and assumed the girl was trying to peek down Buffy's blouse. Faith heard her step back and laughed.

"I ain't tryin' to look down your shirt, B, if that's what you're worried about. Besides, I still remember from my birthday what ya got under those clothes. I just like the song even though I normally don't care for holiday music. And I don't need to take off these sunglasses to know that your cute face is probably blushing right now," Faith insisted before guzzling down the juice and began on the coffee.

"It is not," Buffy lied.

"Is she lyin', D?"

"How did you know I was there?" Dawn lightly shrieked.

"I might be a little hung over, but that doesn't mean my slayer hearin' takes a break. So am I right, is B blushing?"

"Yeah, she is."

"I knew it."

"Could you take them off for a minute, and tell us if we look alright before they get here?" Dawn pleaded softly.

"Sure, if ya can tell me what time it is."

"It's around 8:45 AM. Now take them off."

Faith slowly removed them, studied both Summers girls and smirked.

"Well?" Dawn added when Faith hadn't said a word.

"Ya both look really good. I mean beautiful," Faith answered as she put the sunglasses back on.

"How beautiful?" they asked at the same time.

"That maybe I should have kicked it with ya two to by now. Of course that would mean that B would have had to manage to stay awake first."

This got the blonde to blush a second time, but Dawn frowned a little.

"Cheer up, D. We both know B's not that way. That thing with Satsu was only a one time thing."

"Neither is Dawn," Buffy cut in.

"Of course she isn't," Faith muttered; but the moment Buffy took her eyes off her, the brunette pulled down her sunglasses and arched an eyebrow at Dawn, who instantly blushed.

Faith quickly pushed them back up when she saw Buffy starting to turn around to face her. Faith finished her coffee a moment later.

"Hey, I thought you were trying to talk more correctly," the youngest quizzed.

"As soon as the hangover's gone, I will."

The trio was watching _Scrooged_ when they heard the doorbell ring. After a brief stare over who was going to get off the couch, Buffy gave in and got to the door as it rang for a second time. Dawn followed her with Faith getting up but staying where she stood. As soon as the blonde opened the door, she was met by her friends. The group had stayed at a local hotel after hanging out with the sisters and Faith the previous night.

"Merry Christmas, Buffster and Dawnster," Xander stated as he hugged both sisters.

"You too," Dawn told him.

"Happy holidays, Xander," Buffy replied and motioned to the redhead in the hope that he would get the clue to say a certain something to her best friend.

"Happy Chanukkah, Will," the other three Scoobies said at the same time to the redhead as they shared a group hug.

"Thank you, Happy holidays to you too."

When they broke the hold and turned to face the three people behind them, they found Giles, Olivia, and Vi smiling.

"Happy holidays, Giles, Olivia, and Vi."

"Happy holidays," Dawn echoed her sister while standing beside her.

"Happy holidays, to the both of you," the three of them greeted in unison before all of them entered the apartment.

When Dawn realized the brunette was still by the couch, she indicated for the other girl to join them. Faith shuffled up to them uneasily and stopped when she was beside the teenager. Vi broke the awkward silence by being the first to confront Faith. Faith was both happy and slightly stunned when the other redhead hugged her without any signs of discomfort. Dawn seemed to be the only one to sense how Faith was truly feeling at that moment. The youngest fought the urge to shed a tear. From what she could tell, Faith was trying hard to show she wasn't affected by the sentiment as much as she really was. The others appeared to buy it. The group was surprised again as she hugged the redheaded slayer back. Then the brunette shared ones with the witch and Giles. Since she had never met Olivia, she only shook her hand. Faith finished it off with giving Xander a light jab in his right arm and laughed a little. This brought out more smiles among the group.

"Happy holidays, Faith," the rest of the guests directed to the brunette.

"Right back at you."

"I hope you're all hungry, we made a big breakfast for everyone like we promised," Buffy reminded them.

"How's the hangover, Faith?"

"It disappeared around half an hour ago, Red."

"That's good."

"Yeah," Faith sighed as Buffy turned the holiday music back on with a few versions of Adam Sandler's "The Chanukkah Song" thrown into the mix, making the witch smile.

After eating until their stomachs were full, they got caught up on each others' lives. During their talk, the rest of them mentioned the collage on the wall and a few sketches that were there as well. Buffy explained that Dawn had really gotten into art and was the one who drew them. Dawn almost blushed at all of the compliments. To get the topic off of her, Dawn brought up that Faith had made the collage that they had just seen and the one in her bedroom. When they requested to see it, the teenager rushed back to her room, took the frame off the wall, and rejoined them in the family room. After everyone had gotten a look at it, Faith got some compliments as well. They made her promise to make a few more. After excusing herself to go to the bathroom, the sisters and Willow grilled Giles, Xander, and Vi.

"So how's Faith been since we left?" Buffy began.

"Why are you asking us, you talk to her as much as we do?" Xander exclaimed as his girlfriend nodded along.

"Because we only talk to her, you actually see her. Maybe she puts on an act while on the phone. Something she might not be able to do so well in person."

"She seems ok, Buffy."

"What do you mean she seems ok?" both Summers challenged.

"What Vi means is that she mostly stays in a good mood, gets along with almost every newbie that comes through the door, and even jokes around when she wants to. She kidded around with us about the two of us getting together and about her never falling in love."

"What? You still make jokes about that?" Dawn growled as she raised her voice a little.

"What's the big, Dawnster? She's ok with it since she laughed about it with us."

"It's not funny; it's mean. Just because she laughs about it, it doesn't mean that it doesn't hurt a little inside each time she hears it. You're ALL going to back off on doing that again."

"You've said it yourself."

"Yeah, I was one of the first who did. I apologized to her later," Dawn concluded as she got up and paced toward the bathroom in her search for their guest.

"What's wrong with her?" Willow inquired after the younger Summers disappeared.

"I think…I think Dawn might be crushing on her a bit. She said she wasn't when I brought it up as we were coming back from our vacation," Buffy revealed when she was pretty sure that her sister couldn't hear her.

"What makes you think that?" Xander prodded.

"Lately, when she and I talk about Faith, she gets so defensive. And then there's what just happened."

"What are you saying, Buff, that Dawn and Faith secretly have a more intimate relationship? That they might have…you know…had sex?"

"I wouldn't go that far, Will. They haven't been alone together long enough for that to happen, but I'm sure they have at least kissed a few times. I think I even saw a trace of a hickey on the lower right side of her neck when we were cooking earlier."

"I'm sure it's nothing."

"But what if it isn't? What if you are onto something?" Xander cut in.

"Yeah," the other redhead interrupted.

"I don't know. I mean I wouldn't have a problem if she's bisexual or…," the blonde declared.

"Gay?" her best friend finished for her.

"Yeah, it's just that it might be Faith. I don't know what to think about that."

"Honestly, Buffy, it wouldn't be a bad thing if it was her," Vi announced confidently and kept going when they all gave her a sign to explain her statement, "I haven't known her as long as the rest of you have, but she does a good job ordering the newbies around. Just picture what you and Dawn saw when you came back happening on a daily basis. There were times they were overconfident and wanted to revolt, but she'd find a way to knock them off their imaginary pedestals. She never held a grudge after it. It was pretty amazing actually, and she backed me up when they got out of line around me. She also seems to honestly care about Dawn."

"Anything you care to add, Giles?" Buffy encouraged her mentor as she instantly thought of Faith possibly listening due to the slayer hearing and made sure to play it cool.

"Only that after you two moved, she seemed to lose a little bit of that zest in her life."

"Huh?" all three Scoobies mumbled.

"I'm talking about the happiness of all of you giving her a second chance at friendship. I can see that she wants it. It's almost like a craving to her. To have what she may have never had before coming to Sunnydale. That we all are at least a little bit at fault for what happened back then."

"What about the jokes we've made about her never falling in love?"

"I do say that most of that was uncalled for."

"Most?"

"Yes, I believe that Willow was slightly justified for saying after her…uh...break-up, even though I can understand Faith's side of the story. I am proud of both Willow and Faith for apologizing to each other the next morning."

When Giles was done, they realized it had been awhile since Dawn left. Buffy was tempted to check on her sister to the point where she actually stood up. However, she didn't stop Willow when the redhead had pushed her back down to her seat.

At the same time, beside the bathroom door

"Faith, can I come in?'

"Why, do you need to use the bathroom?"

"No, to talk to you."

"Ok, come in."

Dawn closed the door and began the rest of their conversation.

"So how much did you hear?"

"Everything before you came in here and what they are saying right now," Faith whispered.

"What are they saying, and why are you whispering?"

"If I can hear them, even though they're talking softly, then B and Vi can probably hear us. So maybe you should too."

Dawn listened as Faith quoted each of them and spoke while Faith washed her hands. Faith turned to face her and leaned back against the sink.

"I don't believe it anymore that you'll never fall in love. You will find the right guy."

"What if it's not a guy? What if it's a girl I end up with?" Faith whispered into Dawn's left ear after pulling the other girl a lot closer.

"What are you saying?"

"What I'm trying to say is that I kind of like kissing you, no matter what the situation is."

"So if I kissed you now…"

"I wouldn't stop you."

"Let's test that theory, ok?"

Dawn leaned in while hands were placed on her hips and put hers on the brunette's shoulders when Faith tightened the grip on her. They kissed until they were both out of breath.

"Nice," Dawn determined.

"Ditto," Faith murmured before Dawn began to tug at the sides of Faith's shirt by the waistband of the pants.

When it wouldn't budge, she quickly moved to the front of them, unbuckled the belt, and unbuttoned them.

"What are you doing?" Faith nearly gasped as the zipper was pulled down just as rapidly.

"Since you gave me a hickey, I thought I'd give you one. Take off your shirt."

"Dawn."

"Not all of the way if you don't want to. Just enough to pull your arms out of the sleeves. I don't want to stretch out your shirt."

"Ok," Faith consented but took it completely off, making the younger girl smile at her, "But ya better make it quick."

Faith couldn't hold back a very light gasp at the feeling of soft hands touching her skin just above her hips. Dawn's hands stayed there as she bit hard enough to leave a mark. Faith bit her own hand to prevent herself from making a sound. Ten seconds later, Dawn stopped back to check it out and was pleased to see a dark red mark on the shoulder in front of her.

"Nice job, D," Faith commented as she inspected it as well, "Can I put my shirt back on now? They're probably going to be knocking on the door in less than a minute."

"Sure," Dawn agreed and smiled as Faith reached for the shirt that was lying on the counter behind her, "Faith."

"Yeah?"

"We're just friends with some kissing benefits, right?"

"So you're not crushing on me?" the slayer chuckled.

"What?" Dawn mouthed silently.

"I heard B say that she thinks you're crushing on me."

"You didn't tell me she said that."

"I know. I thought I'd save that to the end. So?"

"I'm not crushing on you. I was just defending you like a best friend should."_ Quit lying to yourself, Summers. You are because she's good now._

"I'm your best friend?"

"Possibly," Dawn voiced before Faith smirked at her, "Ok, you are. Happy now?"

"Yeah, I never really had a best friend," the brunette confessed as she hugged the girl in front of her while her shirt was still off.

At the feeling of Dawn's hands touching the back of Faith's bra, they broke the embrace and Dawn took a few steps back.

"So then I'm your best friend with kissing benefits, and you're not in love or falling in love with me?"

"Yes to the best friend with the kissing part. No to the love part." _LIAR!_

While they left the bathroom, Faith held back a smile at what she had been able to hide from Dawn for a long time. From the very first kiss back at the mall in CA and every one after that, Faith had never felt more alive than when she kissed the younger Summers. It both surprised and scared her. She almost feared the day when everyone would find out. Meanwhile, Dawn was hiding how much she liked her hands on Faith's skin.

Many hours later

When the duo returned, the group exchanged gifts. They were nothing too expensive. Just small ones to show they cared. After that was done, they went to see how well the city was decorated for the holidays. They spent the rest of their time together watching holiday movies. At the end the second one, they decided that they should start heading back home. They had all booked flights early to get good seats and so Willow wouldn't be burdened with teleporting them back. Faith thought she noticed something by how sadly Dawn had opened the door. The Scoobies and Giles couldn't stop themselves from shedding a few tears as they hugged each other. Faith, Vi, and Olivia smiled at the sweetness of it all. Then Vi and Olivia said goodbye to the sisters and Willow. The younger ones were able to not say anything at the sight of Olivia giving Giles a soft peck on the lips. Faith shook Olivia's hand and hugged Willow. That only left her to say goodbye to Buffy and Dawn. She made sure the younger Summers was where she needed to be for what she was going to do. They gasped as Faith leaned in and softly kissed Dawn before hugging her. To throw them off the main reason why she did it, she did the same to the blonde. She stepped back and smirked at all of the shocked expressions.

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT?" Buffy accidentally yelled while Dawn could only blush.

"I guess I'm kind of a sucker for tradition these days."

"Huh?" they all asserted.

Faith casually pointed to the ceiling above the sisters. The rest spotted the mistletoe and groaned that they had forgotten about it. Before leaving, the Scoobies, Vi, and Faith promised to meet up again for Buffy's birthday. It was coming up very soon. After she was sure Buffy was asleep later that night, Dawn sat down on her bed and almost cried as she decided to do a few more sketches. She wished she had defended her best friend a lot more before that day and her last birthday. Maybe things would have been better, and she'd be with the woman she was falling for now if she had. Meanwhile, Faith was thinking about how close she came to letting Dawn do more to her and trying to do the same. She could picture both pants falling to the floor and soft hands roaming over her upper body as she completely unbuttoned the other girl's shirt. She snapped out of it when the thought of almost everyone catching them as Dawn's shirt fell off her shoulders popped into her head. She could even guess the reactions from everybody else before she was able to close the bathroom door: Dawn would hide behind her, Giles would immediately take off his glasses to clean them, Willow would be stunned into silence; Vi would become quiet, too, but be happy for Faith; Xander would most likely be speechless and gawking at them while his imagination ran wild, and Buffy would want to hit her for trying to seduce Dawn. She also knew that she might have made a bad joke about Buffy just being jealous of her little sister.


	14. Chapter 14

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 14

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: R

Summary: The gang celebrates Buffy's 23rd birthday. Will it go smoother than the ones she's had since she moved to Sunnydale? Dawn attempts to give Faith a does of her own medicine.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: I know I said in the author's notes for chapter eight that it was the last of the Angel crossover, but I have the gang talk about how Andrew and twelve new slayers went to L.A. to get Dana away from Angel and his gang at Wolfram & Hart. Since they didn't give an actual date for Buffy's birthday and it was after the Christmas episode in season three, I decided to make it near the end of January. I'm having the events of "Damage" happen around the same time because drama always seems to happen on or around her birthday. N666, thanks once again for such a quick review. I'm happy that you love Dawn and Faith and thought that they were cute in the previous chapter. You can expect more of that along with some sexual tension between the two of them. Ltlconf, it's good to hear from you again. Thanks for reviewing so quickly as well. I'm happy that you're satisfied with the speed of progress between Dawn and Faith. I recall the line about them being doomed at the end of the episode "I Robot...You Jane". However, it shouldn't be hard for the fans to remember the disagreement before Buffy was kicked out. And finally, Dawn will continue to defend Faith.

* * *

><p>Friday; January 23rd, 2004; Buffy's 23rd birthday; a club in Rome, Italy; around 8:00 PM<p>

All of the original Scoobies, Giles, Faith, and Vi had gathered at the Summers apartment to celebrate the blonde's birthday. They did the usual cake and presents before hitting a popular club in the city. After a drink or two, the only ones left at their tables were Giles, Buffy, and Willow. As always, Faith's provocative moves began drawing others to her. As a handful of guys made their way toward Faith, Buffy flashed back to the time she and the brunette slayer had gone to The Bronze after taking out that nest of vampires. She remembered Xander arguing over Buffy's ode to Faith during Chemistry class and Faith encouraging her to ditch school to do it.

All it had taken was being called "girlfriend", the drawing on the window, and a look to get her to climb out a window and join the other girl for a pre-sunset slaying. As she thought about it even more, she recalled that very look. The smirk and the temporary arching of her eyebrows seemed to work a magic of there own. The memory moved along to them dancing together and Faith occasionally holding her hand as they gyrated to the music. Faith's touch felt so seductive that she wasn't sure what would have happened if Angel hadn't shown up. The thoughts had distracted her from what the rest of her body was doing.

"Like moths to a flame, huh?" a soft voice said into her left ear. It snapped her back to reality. She turned her head to see her best friend smiling back at her, then straight ahead, then back at the blonde.

"Huh?"

Buffy gazed straight ahead at Willow's urging to see Faith dancing with a few guys, but the brunette was watching her and smirking. Buffy noticed that Faith was a lot closer than she was earlier. Buffy took a moment or two to scan the area around her and blushed. During her flashback, the rest of her body had gotten up from her seat and was closing in on the other slayer.

"I wasn't going to…"

"Sure you weren't," Willow giggled as the sadness she had dealing with before arriving in Italy earlier that day disappeared at the power Faith seemed to currently have over her best friend.

"I wasn't, I swear."

"If you want to ditch your best friend for someone who…," Willow started to tease until she realized what she was about to say and stopped.

"I don't," Buffy insisted.

"It's ok, Buff. It's your birthday and so far it's been trouble free. So if you want to dance with her, you can. I won't mind."

"You know you just jinxed it, don't you?"

"I…I."

"I'm just kidding, Will. I mean they have to get better sooner or later, don't they?"  
>"Now who jinxed it?"<p>

Both girls giggled like schoolgirls briefly.

"How about YOU dance with me, Will?" Buffy suggested as she led Willow to the dance floor.

"Ok," Willow agreed and danced closely with the slayer, but not as close as Buffy had done with Faith the second night in Los Angeles.

Both girls relaxed and smiled as Faith continued to taunt the guys. The brunette would pull one close enough for them to kiss her and then shove them away when the guy tried before moving to the next guy. When she had gone through the entire circle around her, she wiggled a finger on her right hand to someone. The other two ignored it and spun around to face the happy couple of Xander and Vi. The foursome was smiling until curiosity got the better of them, and they glanced back to Faith. The four of them gawked as the person the dark haired slayer had encouraged to join her was none other than Dawn. The blonde broke away from the group and took a few steps before being stopped by a small hand grabbing her right arm. She peeked over her shoulder to see her best friend pleading for to not make a scene.

"They're just dancing together, Buffy. Yeah, they're close, but not as close as you were to her that night back in L.A.."

"That's how it started with me and Faith. The next thing I know, we were in my hotel room before I…Oh God. I have to stop it now before she makes a move on Dawn."

"Please don't do anything. You'll just embarrass yourself and upset Dawnie. Dawnie trusts her, and we're starting to as well. Faith even taught her some moves when you couldn't or wouldn't just in case she needed them. Don't ruin it, ok?"

"What if she uses that trust to lure Dawn back to the apartment, gets her to have sex with her, and hurts her? Like it's just another round of 'Get some, get gone.'"

"At least wait until they get as close as you got before you overreact."

"Fine."

They eyed the slayer and the teenager, who returned the stare they were receiving. Dawn and Faith appeared to have a good idea of what the blonde and the redhead were whispering about. Dawn clearly got annoyed at Buffy once again treating her like a little kid and decided to do something about it. The Scoobies watched and gasped as the other two got as close as they could without actually touching each other. While Buffy was getting angry at her sister's antics, Dawn was loving it and could tell Faith was too. Dawn chose to take it a step further by twirling around to come face to face with Faith. She pretended she was going to kiss the slayer by leaning in to do it and pulling away at the very last second. Faith smirked but inside she really wanted the kiss, even if it meant fighting with the overprotective blonde.

At the expression from Faith, Dawn leaned in again and whispered, "Let's go get something to drink, ok?"

"Cool," Faith told her before focusing on the guys, "Sorry, boys, but the girl gets upset if she doesn't get her way."

The guys groaned as they observed the sexy female letting the younger girl grab her by her left hand and lead her away from the crowd. They went on a search for other girls to hook up with. They didn't see the couple being chased after by four other people. As the group followed the other two, they caught Giles waving goodbye to all of them.

"I should get back at you for that little comment back there," Dawn declared with what Faith could see was fake anger.

"But you won't because I'm so hot."

Before Dawn could reply, they were interrupted.

"Where did Giles go, and what the hell did you think you two were doing earlier?" Buffy asked angrily.

"We were dancing, duh. As for why Giles left, he said it was because it was getting late for him, and I think we were making him a little bit uncomfortable," Dawn answered calmly.

"Gee, you think so?" Xander blurted out and got a glare from Buffy.

"I can handle this, and thank you for taking the words out of my mouth," Buffy replied sarcastically and directed the rest to her sister and Faith, "Well?"

"Well, what?"

"What did you think you were doing with my sister?"

"She already told you, B. Besides, you saw it for yourself."

"You didn't need to dance that close to her. Any closer and you would have been rubbing up against her."

"So?" both Dawn and Faith challenged.

"You're too young for her, Dawnie."

"Quit treating me like a kid; I'm a teenager."

"That's right, you're only seventeen. The last time I checked that was underage. So if anything happened, it would be illegal."

"Not here it isn't," Dawn asserted.

"What?"

"It's sixteen here," Faith revealed with a smirk.

"How do you know that? Did you check so you could legally seduce my sister? You know…Get some then get gone."

"I checked, Buffy. It was my idea because I was curious. Faith didn't even know until I told her," Dawn explained and sighed happily the feeling of Faith's right arm resting casually on her left shoulder, which clearly irritated Buffy.

"So does this mean you're bi or...," Buffy began to question but was stopped.

"A lesbian?" Dawn finished for the blonde.

"Y-Yeah."

Dawn gazed at everyone in their group, ending with her sister, and responded. "I guess I'm bi like Faith is. I still find some guys attractive, but I'm also attracted to Faith."

"After what happened on my birthday, you shouldn't look so surprised, B," Faith advised after a gape from the blonde.

"What happened on her birthday?" Willow butted in before she could stop herself.

"After we left the club, B and I headed to her room at the Hyperion. We got kind of far before B conked out."

Everyone noticed the glare from the blonde focusing on the brunette.

"How far?" Xander babbled, "That is if you don't mind telling us."

"XANDER! Faith…don't," Buffy demanded but it was ignored.

"I got B down to her underwear."

"And you?" Xander added instantly.

"She saw everything," Faith divulged with a wink toward her sister slayer and continued when Dawn frowned at her, "Don't worry, D. You'll get your chance sometime."

"Buffy, I know what you're doing is because you love me. I know all four of you care, but so does she," Dawn responded at seeing the concerned look on her sister's face before smiling at Faith and placing her left hand on Faith's arm, "You can't protect me from everything. You have to let me grow up. You even said you wanted to see me grow up because I was going to be beautiful and powerful. I will still need you, just not for everything anymore."

At the sight of tears coming from her sister, Dawn stepped up to her sister and pleaded, "Don't cry, Buffy."

"I'm s-sorry," the blonde apologized as she was hugged.

Faith bit her lower lip to prevent herself from teasing the sisters.

"If you hurt her in any way, I swear to God..."

"We haven't even gone on a date yet. It was just a dance."

"Oh, right," the teenager exclaimed, "Faith, would you like to go on a date with me?"

"Sure. When?"

"How about tomorrow night?"

"Sounds good. Oh, wait. I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because B and I have to leave tomorrow, remember?" Faith reminded her before turning to the blonde behind her, "Sorry if that spoiled the good mood you've been in tonight."

"No, it's ok."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Faith, I'm sure."

"Ok. Do you think sending geek boy to go get that Dana chick was a good idea? I know he's doing well with the training, but he screams like a little girl at something dead and whines a lot."

The entire group laughed at Faith's accurate description.

"Well, he's got a dozen slayers with him. If he can't handle it, I know they can."

"You're probably right. How about next Friday night, D? I know you did the asking, but how about you let me make the plans?"

"Alright. I get to make the plans for the second date…I mean if there is one."

"Fine with me."

Everyone had another drink before leaving the club.

"So was this a good birthday, Buffy?" Willow inquired with a nervous smile.

"I've had worse," Buffy commented with a smile after checking out everyone's reaction to the redhead's inquiry.

Everyone then smiled or laughed as they made their way back to the apartment, where Giles was waiting on them. Fortunately for both Dawn and Faith, none of them saw Faith slowly run the fingers on her right hand down Dawn's spine during that time or the silent gulp Dawn let out at the touch.

Many hours later, The Summers apartment

After another talk where the gang expressed their concern for Willow's attempt at finding that special someone, Willow gladly teleported Xander, Vi, Giles, and herself back to Scotland. Faith had tried to relax, but thoughts of how to make sure her date with Dawn next Friday was perfect kept running through her mind. To get her mind off of it, Faith decided to patrol the streets of Rome in the hopes that staking some vamps would end any nervous thoughts. At Dawn's insistence to Faith and a begging to the blonde, Buffy agreed to tag along despite the fact there had been no reports of anything even the slightest demonic going on. As they walked beside each other, the slayers found things to talk about. The longest topic had been their worry about Willow. When they decided to call it a night, they started to head back home. Buffy suddenly remembered that they needed a few things from a grocery store. They assured each other that they could make it back safely on there own since the patrol had been a bust.

Faith returned to find Dawn asleep on the couch. Apparently, Dawn had been worried enough to try and wait up for them. It hadn't worked though. Faith smirked at the smile on Dawn's face as she took off her boots. She noticed Dawn was wearing a pink tank top that appeared to show a fair amount of cleavage and that she wasn't wearing a bra. She was also in shorts. This made her think about how the younger girl looked innocent and hot at the same time. The innocence made her want to protect Dawn. The hotness made her want to take the girl back to the bedroom, rip the clothes from her body, and have the other girl make all kinds of noise as she took away that innocence with great pleasure. She didn't want to wake the other girl and decided she was going to carry the teenager to bed. She was getting ready to pick her up when Dawn yawned and shifted a little. The shifting made the shirt move until it was right above her belly button. Faith had stepped to her right as the younger Summers did this, accidentally bumped into the end table, and knocked off the lamp.

"Damn, that was close," Faith muttered in what she hoped was low enough tone after catching the lamp.

"Yeah, it was. Be glad you caught it. Buffy would have been pissed. That's her favorite lamp," Dawn informed her as she got up off the couch.

Faith gulped while Dawn approached her and realized that Dawn had caught her staring at the teenager's chest.

Dawn smirked and added as she stood less than a foot in front of her, "Like what you see?"

Faith nodded when she found out that seeing Dawn like that had made her temporarily lose the ability to talk.

"Would you be up for sleeping in my room? I'm sure you remember the hide-a-bed isn't that comfortable."

Dawn giggled at the second nod.

"Then come with me."

"What about Buffy? Aren't you worried about her catching us?"

"Not really. But if you are, you can join me in an hour. She's usually out by then."

"And when she wakes up?"

"I know when she gets up. It's the same time every day without fail. I'll set my alarm for fifteen minutes earlier that that, just to be safe," Dawn confirmed before kissing the brunette softly on the lips and gently grabbing Faith's hips.

Faith welcomed the kiss and did the same with Dawn's. At the sounds of feet climbing stairs, Dawn broke the kiss and the grip on each other's hips. She marched quickly to her bedroom and closed the door. Faith turned on the TV and searched for anything interesting. She smirked back at the smile Buffy sent her way as the blonde held up a canister of coffee grounds and some orange juice.

"So, where's Dawnie, and what are you watching?"

"D's probably asleep in her bed, and there's not much on," Faith claimed and settled on some eighties movie she couldn't remember the name of at that time.

"Faith."

"Yeah."

"Why did you tell everybody about what happened on your birthday?"

Buffy became confused at Faith indicating for the blonde to join her on the couch.

"I didn't tell them everything, like how I got more off of you than that and what else you let me do," Faith whispered, "And let's not forget what I was able to do the next morning."

"You better not tell them, and why are you whispering?" Buffy spoke just as softly after a combination blush and gasp.

Faith simply pointed over her shoulder toward Dawn's room.

"I'm going to go check on her before going to bed," Buffy stated as she got off the couch and unintentionally began to ogle the brunette's ass as the other slayer pulled out the bed.

"Ok, I guess I'll see you the morning," Faith announced while unaware the glimpse the blonde had given her changed into an ogling of her butt.

"Right. Goodnight," Buffy responded as she realized what she was doing and immediately quit, "Faith."

"Yeah, B?"

"Thanks for not making a big deal over how protective I am of Dawn, even though she's seventeen."

"I understand. Thanks for letting me crash here by the way."

"You're welcome."

Faith watched as the blonde opened the door to check on her sister, peek in briefly, closed the door, and signaled for Faith to keep the noise down before heading into her room and closing the door. Faith smirked again at how Dawn had obviously faked being asleep. She got off the hide-a-bed and arranged the pillows to appear that she was there in case the blonde passed by on the way to the bathroom or kitchen for any reason.

Half an hour later, outside of Dawn's bedroom

Faith had planned to follow Dawn's request and wait an hour, but the sounds coming from the blonde's bedroom had made her curious. She strolled up to the door and smirked when she heard her breathing a little bit louder than normal and mumbling. She couldn't tell what Buffy was saying but took it as clear sign the slayer was officially asleep. She went back and double checked the hide-a-bed before walking to Dawn's room. Then she knocked lightly on the door and opened it enough to see the other girl.

"Are you awake?"

"Yes, who is it?" Dawn questioned just to be sure.

"Faith."

"Come in and close the door quietly."

Faith did as ordered while a light was turned on low. Faith slowly turned around to see Dawn smiling while lying on her right side.

"Are you joining me or not?" Dawn added when Faith hadn't moved at all.

"Definitely," Faith whispered as she advanced at her usual pace.

"You don't need to whisper. Buffy isn't that light of a sleeper these days. The only things that can wake her are when she senses something supernatural other than other slayers, when she needs to go to the bathroom, or an alarm clock."

"Dawn," Faith muttered when the teenager patted the spot beside her and lifted the covers a little.

"Yeah."

"Did you think that by dressing like that for bed that I would change my mind and have your sister go to Scotland without me? Buffy asked for my help. That doesn't happen that often. I'm not going to let all of them down."

"Maybe I was, or maybe I just felt like messing with your head," Dawn confessed and continued when she saw Faith was about to talk again, "Just like you have done to me and Buffy before."

"I guess what goes around comes around, huh?"

"In that case, definitely. Now, get in bed, please."

"Sure," Faith murmured as she took off her pants to reveal underwear more revealing than Dawn's.

She held in a smirk at hearing Dawn gulp at discovering some of her butt wasn't covered by the underwear while she laid the pants on a nearby chair.

"So what were you doing earlier? I was going to ask then, but we heard Buffy coming. So I decided to wait until we were alone again."

"What do you mean?"

"You were looking at me before you knocked the lamp off the end table. Were you planning on taking advantage of me in my unconscious state?"

"Of course not," Faith argued after gasping in shock at the accusation she didn't know it was a bad joke, "I wouldn't do that that to you. I swear. I didn't want to wake you, so I thought I'd try to carry you to bed. But…"

"But what?"

"When I was getting ready to pick you up, you yawned and shifted enough to make the tank top move until it was right above your belly button."

"You mean like this?" Dawn guessed as she pulled the shirt up into the exact position it had been in before.

"Yeah."

"Ok. By the way, I was kidding about the taking advantage of me while I was asleep. Do you forgive me?"

"Yes."

Dawn observed silently as Faith reached for the covers, and got on her back. Dawn smiled at her before leaning in and softly kissing her. Faith didn't stop her and held the back of Dawn's head with her right hand to make the kiss last longer. Dawn didn't object and even lay partly on Faith. Faith moaned as her left hand landed on the other girl's back and began to massage it. Dawn reacted by actually climbing on top of the slayer. She partially straddled Faith's upper thighs while lying down on her and running her fingers through the dark hair. She held back a giggle as the hand on her back trailed down to her butt. She let it rest there for a few seconds. Then she pulled it off, broke the kiss, and switched to snuggling up beside the older girl. When Faith groaned, Dawn pulled up the shirt up to expose a small part of her stomach again. She gently reached for the brunette's right hand and put it on the exposed skin. Faith sighed happily and did the same with her shirt and Dawn's left hand. Dawn gasped, pulled both hands away, put her shirt back in its original spot before laying her head partially on the left side of Faith's chest.

"Oh, come on. You're going to stop it now?"

"We HAVE to."

"Why?"

"Because if we had continued with all of that, I don't know when I would have stopped you or if I would have. I'm sorry, Faith, but I'm still not ready for that. We haven't been on a first date yet. I'm really sorry; please don't leave."

"Not until you say so. Hey, get up for a moment."

"Why?"

"So I can turn off the light."

"Ok," Dawn complied as she got up long enough for Faith reach out for the lamp.

Since it was now completely dark, Faith reached for where she thought Dawn's shoulder was. She smiled to herself when she felt the bare skin under her fingers.

"What did you do that for?"

"It's kind of dark now, so I just wanted to make sure I knew where you were at," Faith divulged as she lay down beside the other girl, "Goodnight, Dawnie."

At hearing Faith calling her that nickname, Dawn placed her left hand back on Faith's still exposed stomach and her head partly on the left side of Faith's chest.

"I never thought I'd say this to anyone in a situation like this, but please stop," Faith requested as she felt the small hand moving back and forth across her stomach while her heart seemed to beat faster and louder.

"Relax and I'll stop."

Faith got her heart back to its normal pace and sighed when the hand quit moving but didn't quit touching her.

"This is ok, right? I mean about keeping my hand there."

"As long as it doesn't move, we're cool."

Both then gradually fell asleep with smiles on their faces.


	15. Chapter 15

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 15

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: R

Summary: This is what happens from the following morning to the night before Dawn and Faith's first date.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: Since we didn't learn enough about Faith before she ended up going to prison and what she did while she was in there, I decided that she learned how to do something while she was there. Ltlconf, I can always count on you for a great review, and thanks for reviewing so quickly. Yeah, Buffy could be considered a hypocrite with the age comment, but I'm going with she's going by experience. Actually, it was Buffy who said, "It's ok." and "Yes, Faith, I'm sure." I guess I wasn't clear enough about that. I had it be said after Faith directed her attention to Buffy. Faith was apologizing for possibly spoiling Buffy's good mood on a birthday that was pretty drama free for once. Dawn will continue to make it tougher for Faith to control her urges in this and the upcoming chapters.

* * *

><p>7:45 AM, the next morning<p>

"Faith, you have to wake up," Dawn insisted as she gently shook the brunette.

"Why?" Faith questioned while opening her eyes.

"Because as much as we're both enjoying this, Buffy will be up in fifteen minutes."

"Say no more," Faith relented before kissing Dawn softly on the lips and getting out of bed.

"Faith," Dawn said to stop the slayer as she got a hand on the doorknob, "Thanks for staying with me last night."

"Thanks for the invite. We should do it again sometime."

"How about after our date next Friday?'

"Wicked."

Faith turned around and put her jeans back on, giving Dawn a great view of the slayer's partially exposed butt. Faith peeked over her shoulder and realized that the other girl seemed to have become lost in thought after staring at her. Faith smirked and let Dawn stand there as she left the room. However, she closed the door just loud enough for it to be possibly heard by the girl currently in a daze. About five seconds after it closed, Dawn snapped out of it and noticed she was alone. She groaned, took off her shirt, put on a bra, and put on the shirt again while she got ready for whatever Faith had in store for her next.

"I'm glad to see you snapped out whatever dream seeing my butt put you in,"

Faith replied after Dawn arrived in the kitchen.

"How long was I like that?"

"Not sure how long it was before I left the room, but it's been at least thirty seconds since I closed the door. So I would probably say that you came to about five seconds after I left, about twenty seconds changing into that bra, and the rest to get here while preparing for whatever might happen next. Care to tell me what was running through your head, even thought it's pretty clear what it was?"

"Faith, please don't…," Dawn pleaded as she moved forward and stopped when she was standing almost right in front of Faith.

"Say or do anything to make fun of you?"

"Exactly."

"Only if you can think of anything to do or say that will stop me."

Dawn thought about it for a second before leaning in to kiss the older girl. Faith responded by wrapping her arms around Dawn's waist as they continued to kiss. The younger Summers managed to wrap her arms around Faith's neck without breaking the kissing.

"AHEM!" the older Summers stated loudly to stop what was going on in front of her.

"What gives, B? I'm sure D was about to stick her tongue in my mouth."

Faith smirked as Dawn broke the embrace, stepped back enough to almost bump into her sister, and gaped at the brunette.

"Since you're referring to my SISTER, I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

"It's probably a great idea if you do," Dawn asserted.

"So why were you kissing my sister like that? Was it to just mess with my head?"

"Yeah," Faith answered before Dawn could open her mouth.

Dawn focused on her sister and quizzed, "So when are you two leaving and how long will you be gone?"

"I don't really know how long," Buffy confirmed as she came into the kitchen, "But we're leaving as soon as we get something to eat and cleaned up. Willow told us to call her when we're ready because she's going to teleport us there."

"I could do that. She's been teaching me some spells, and that's the latest one."

"Maybe when it's time to come back," the slayers determined at the same time.

"Are you preparing to cook?" the sisters directed to their guest, who was getting out a few frying pans and cooking utensils.

"I guess. You don't mind, do you? I was kind of in the mood for bacon and eggs if you have them."

"We don't mind," Buffy declared, "When did you learn to cook?"

"During my brief stint in prison," Faith divulged as she reached into the refrigerator for what she needed.

"Oh," both Summers sighed sadly.

"It's five by five. I did kind of belong there for some of the things I did after turning on you, like the killing of Lester Worth and a lot of other things."

Dawn and Buffy didn't comment on Faith not mentioning Deputy Mayor, Allen Finch.

"So how many ways do you know how to make them?" Buffy challenged

'Every possible way, so how do you want them?"

"Scrambled," they responded immediately.

"I was hoping you would say that. That's my favorite too. Don't let any one else know I can cook, ok? If you do, they might expect me to make it a habit."

"We won't," Dawn promised for the both of them while Buffy just smiled at learning something else about Faith.

"Good. Just get comfortable even though it shouldn't take that long."

Buffy and Dawn followed Faith's request and grabbed something to drink before sitting down. Dawn poured herself some juice while Buffy poured coffee into two mugs, sat one down on the counter to Faith's right and took hers over to the table. She had to almost bite her tongue from saying anything at catching her sister basically ogling Faith, particularly her butt. Dawn took a second glance over at Buffy and found out that she had been caught. She blushed and peered down at the table. When breakfast was ready, Faith scooped the eggs and bacon onto three plates and set two of them down on the table.

She put them in front of Dawn first then Buffy, who smirked and arched an eyebrow at both her sister and Faith. Dawn couldn't stop herself from blushing again at being served first. Faith just smirked back at her sister slayer. She was about to get the silverware when she saw some already there. She ended up smirking at them again before sitting down in the chair across from the other two. She held back a third one as they complimented on how good they tasted. After the first bite, all three seemed to almost inhale them. They ate until their stomachs were full.

"My compliments to the cook," Buffy told her as she got up, "Since everything was so good, how about you take your shower first. Dawn and I will clean up in here."

"Thanks, B, I'll make sure I save both of you some warm water."

"I hope so," Buffy voiced teasingly as the brunette walked into the bathroom.

When Buffy was positive Faith couldn't hear them, she playfully hummed the wedding march into Dawn's left ear.

"Buffy," her sister gasped before smacking her on the arm, "don't do that. What if she heard you? It might get her to cancel the date. She said she didn't think she'd ever want to get married. I want to go out with her when you two get back."

"Sorry."

"Good."

About an hour later, the Summers family room

The trio stood as they waited for the redhead to do her magic.

"Be good, Dawn. Try not to get any trouble until we get back," Buffy ordered as she hugged her sister.

"You too and keep me updated on what's going on over there, ok?"

"Catch you later, D," Faith stated as she took her turn at hugging Dawn.

Dawn sighed as the slayers disappeared before Faith's hug was over.

Thursday morning, January 29th; around noon, the council headquarters/slayer training facility in Scotland

The gang had surprisingly started to get through to Dana in a shorter time than they expected. For the first day or two, Dana had to be restrained or slightly drugged; but they had been able to earn Dana's trust. Everyone listened as Buffy and Faith had talked about their experiences since being called, both good and bad. They even surprised their friends and the other slayers when they had complimented each other during their conversations. Giles had discussed with Dana more about the original prophecy but had done his share of making comments about both Buffy and Faith. Dana was currently sparring with Buffy as the others studied the newbie's fighting skills. She had paid attention during her match with Faith. After that was over, Buffy had offered to do the same. Dana almost instantly accepted. She proved to have some skill but still needed more training.

"Ok, Dana, you did really well, but you still need more training. Go and practice with the others. Don't get too rough though. Remember that you're still learning," Buffy reminded her.

Dana reacted with a nod and a smile before heading over to where Vi was leading the training drills.

"You're doing a great job with Dana, B."

"I could say the same about you. Dawn would be proud of you too if she wasn't too busy checking you out during the match," Buffy affirmed with a giggle and added when the other slayer seemed to zone out, "You ok, Faith?"

"Yeah. It's just that I've been thinking about her every night. Mostly worrying about how the date could go. But you couldn't blame Dawn if she had checked me out. I am pretty hot. I'm sure even you have checked me out at least once."

"Anything else?" Buffy continued while ignoring Faith's remarks about both Summers checking out their former enemy.

"I'm afraid of hurting her. I really don't want to. I think about how great the date could go then the negative side of me starts worrying that something will go wrong and we won't be friends anymore. I don't want to lose that. I've worked hard to build a close friendship with her…with all of you."

"We all have. It's just a shame that we weren't able to the first time."

"I…," Faith began to say but was interrupted by the ringing of Buffy's cell phone.

"It's Dawn," Buffy mentioned before listening to her sister, "Hi…Yeah, it's going better than we expected…That might have to wait until Saturday though…I'm sorry, Dawn, but we need to make sure it's safe to leave even with everyone else who is here….What…Ok, I'll talk to them. Get what you need and be ready. I'll call you when it's time…Yeah, we love you too…Goodbye."

After she hung up, she found out she had the complete attention of the entire Scooby gang, Giles, and Faith.

"What's up, B? Is there something wrong with Dawn?"

"Is Dawnie ok, Buff?"

"Dawn heard a rumor of a small nest of vampires showing up in Rome. Do all of you think you can handle everything if Faith and I go back today?"

"Yeah, do what you got to do," Xander assured her.

"How soon can you be ready?" Buffy inquired from Faith.

"I can be ready in ten minutes."

"Great."

"Do you want me to teleport you?" Willow suggested firmly.

"We're good. We agreed to let her give it a try since you've been teaching her. You think she can do it, right?"

"I'm sure."

"Thanks, Will," Buffy murmured before she and Faith left to grab their bags.

Another twenty minutes later, the Summers family room

As soon as the duo appeared in the room they were hugged by the anxious teen.

"It worked. I did a good job, huh?" Dawn announced and stopped before the bragging started.

"Well, we don't seem to be missing anything; so yeah, it worked," Buffy joked.

"Good job, D. but don't let it go to your head too much, alright."

"Sure," Dawn conceded before hugging them, "So can I go with you on the search for the nest?"

"No," both slayers commanded at the same time.

"Why not? I did well during the battle in Sunnydale, and Faith has taught me some moves."

Buffy was about to explain why but was interrupted by the other slayer.

"Because we don't know exactly how small this nest actually is. I don't want you to get hurt and ruin what I have planned for you tomorrow night. Understand?"

"Fine, but I'm waiting up for you to make sure you're ok. You'll call me if it's more than you expected, right?"

"We'll see," the blonde claimed before she took her bags into her room.

As soon as the door closed, Dawn jumped into Faith's arms, kissed her, and wrapped her arms around Faith's neck. Faith kissed her back just as passionately for a few seconds before breaking the kiss.

"I missed you," Dawn whispered.

"Of course you did," Faith gloated with a smirk as she wrapped her arms around Dawn's waist.

Dawn rolled her eyes at that comment and asked, "Did you miss me?"

"Definitely," Faith admitted as she picked up Dawn and carried both her and her bag into the other bedroom and closed the door with her left foot.

After a brief make out on the bed, they joined Buffy in the family room. The trio grabbed a bite to eat and watched movies until it was time to leave. Buffy and Faith made a promise to call if there was a problem. However, they determined as soon as they left the apartment that they wouldn't call her unless it got really bad.

Many hours later, the Summers apartment

Faith's slayer urges were internally raging as she entered the apartment. The small nest Dawn talked about had turned into about ten vampires. It had taken around an hour before they had tracked them down. They had staked them using the same tactics they had used to get Balthazar's amulet. And had spent around another hour just to make sure they had gotten them all. After the two satisfied the first h, they went to the same local club they went to for Buffy's birthday. To prevent herself from doing things she shouldn't do with anyone, especially Buffy, she chose to stay away from the dance floor and restricted herself to the empty table they had found. Buffy tried and failed to get Faith to join her for at least one song. When prodded about why she said no, Faith explained that she was worried about where it could lead if she started. After three beers, Faith chose to leave and go back to the apartment. Buffy had run into some friends she had made and planned to stay a little longer but not before warning Faith not to make any moves on Dawn without the younger girl's permission. Faith agreed and assumed that she would have to go straight to the bathroom for a cold shower.

She quietly entered the apartment and walked into the family room to discover the teenager once again asleep on the couch, like after Buffy's birthday. This time it was tougher for Faith. Dawn was wearing the shortest shorts she had ever seen Dawn wear and another tank top, Faith's favorite one to be exact. What made it even worse was that she was once again not wearing a bra. Faith almost growled at the sight. What a night for a case of déjà vu. She leaned over Dawn and used her right fingers to brush some hair off of Dawn's face. As she slowly pulled her hand away and stepped back, she bumped into the coffee table. The sound it made at the contact woke the sleeping girl. Faith sighed as the younger Summers just as slowly opened her eyes.

"Hi, D," Faith greeted softly, even though they were alone.

"What time is it?" Dawn mumbled as she sat up and stretched, knowing that as she did this her chest got closer to Faith.

"A-About e-eleven th-thirty," Faith stuttered.

"Are you ok, Faith?"

"F-Five by f-five."

Faith gulped while Dawn stood up and took a few steps closer to her and concluded that Dawn had caught her staring at the teenager's chest.

Dawn smirked and added as she stood less than half a foot in front of her, "Like what you see?"

Faith nodded when she found out that seeing Dawn like that had made her momentarily lose the ability to talk. Dawn giggled at the nod.

"Want your shirt back?"

"Uh huh," Faith managed to get out.

"Well, I think I look good in it and so do you. So I'll make you a deal," Dawn offered and kept going when the slayer remained silent, "If you let me keep it, you can sleep in my bed again tonight."

That seemed to snap Faith out of what Dawn wearing her shirt was doing to her.

"No, it's ok. You don't have to give up your bed. And you can keep the shirt; I can always get another one."

"Who said anything about giving up my bed?"

"Oh, you're saying that we can share your bed tonight and tomorrow?"

"Yes, but only sleeping. I know that you still haven't cured the second h yet, but I'm not ready to have sex with you."

"It's cool. I'll just take a cold shower. I'll be…"

"Wait a second," Dawn demanded as she stopped the slayer by gripping her left bicep.

"What now?"

"Can I at least give you a kiss before you do?"

"I guess you can."

Dawn let go of her arm and kissed her. As Faith returned the kiss, Dawn deepened it and surprised her by squeezing Faith's butt. Almost the very second Faith discovered what Dawn was doing, she broke the kiss and the hold the teenager had on her.

"You shouldn't be doing that, D, especially after I've slayed five vampires so close together."

"You got five? How many were there?"

"That small nest you heard about turned out to be ten of them. Your sister staked the other five."

"Wh-Where's Buffy?" Dawn grilled with clear worry.

"She's back at the club we always go to," Faith kept explaining when Dawn frowned at her, "Don't worry. I didn't do anything with or to her. I told you I was done making moves on her, and I meant it. B ran into some of her other friends and chose to stay there a little bit longer."

"Did she say how long she'd be gone?"

"No," Faith informed and was met with another kiss with as much heat as the previous one.

"Dawn, stop. I really need to take that shower, or I might end up doing something I shouldn't do."

"Fine," Dawn mumbled, "I'm going to bed. To be safe, come in after Buffy goes to bed."

"Alright."

Faith gazed at her until the door closed. Then she put the table into its original spot and ran to the bathroom.

Twenty minutes later

It hadn't taken that long at all for Faith to cure the urges inside and was watching TV when she heard the blonde enter the apartment.

"Welcome home, B."

"Thanks, so everything's ok? I mean you didn't do anything you shouldn't have done with my sister."

"I said I wouldn't. I had to take a cold shoulder shortly after I got here."

"Why?"

"Because D was sleeping on the couch."

"So?"

"She's wearing my favorite tank top and the shortest pair of shorts I have ever seen on her. She was looking kind of hot."

"Faith!"

"I didn't do anything but give her a few kisses before taking a shower. Kisses SHE started. She did more though."

"What did she do?" Buffy groaned as she prepared for whatever Faith was going to tell her.

"She squeezed my ass when I began kissing her back," Faith described and affirmed after she saw Buffy was getting upset, "I stopped her as soon as I knew what she was doing. We kissed once more before she went to bed, which was around twenty minutes ago."

"Ok."

"So did you cure the second h yet?"

"No."

Faith smirked and playfully taunted, "You know, B, if I hadn't taken that shower and Dawn wasn't into me like that, I might have tried something with you."

"Since we're being honest, I'll tell you something."

"What is it?"

"If that was true, I might have done that with you," Buffy commented convincingly as she advanced toward the other slayer, stopped about three inches in front of her, and smiled seductively at her.

"Really?" Faith chirped with an unbelieving expression.

"No…not really," Buffy confessed after she pretended that she was going to kiss her by leaning in and pulling away at the very last moment with a second smile and a giggle.

Faith groaned and spoke with sarcastic humor, "Tease."

Buffy could see what Faith was doing and decided to join in the verbal sparring like she had done with Willow after returning to Sunnydale from her short stay in Los Angeles.

"Slut."

"Prude."

'Hussy."

"Goody two shoes."

"Delinquent."

"Tight ass."

"Smart ass."

They temporarily broke into laughter.

"So are you sleeping on the hide-a-bed again?"

"Yeah," Faith lied successfully as she moved the table and started to pull it out.

"Goodnight, Faith, and good job tonight."

"Right back at you, B."

When Buffy closed her door, Faith organized the pillows to look like she was sleeping there, turned off the light, lightly knocked on the door, and carefully opened it a little.


	16. Chapter 16

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 16

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: R

Summary: This is what happens from the moment Faith enters Dawn's bedroom until the next morning.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's note: The legal age of consent in Italy is sixteen, and Dawn is seventeen at the moment. I plan to have her not be ready until she's eighteen. It doesn't mean I won't have the couple start to do more and more as it gets closer to Dawn's eighteenth birthday though. Dawn's teasing/taunting toward Faith almost ruins the plans for their date.

* * *

><p>A few seconds later, Dawn's bedroom<p>

Faith noticed the light was on low again.

"Can I come in?"

"Yes, I was waiting for you."

"Cool, I would have been here sooner but your sister…"

"I heard."

"You're not mad about what you heard, are you?"

"That depends. Did you mean what you said?"

"About?"

"About how you didn't want to do anything with her since I was into you in that way?"

"Yeah. If you didn't like me like that, I might have tried with her. I wouldn't want to ruin what we had just because I was feeling horny. Besides, you're hot enough to wait for."

"You think I'm hot?"

"Definitely."

"Since when?"

"Since I came back. You seemed to get even hotter when I came to Scotland for your birthday."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

"I'm assuming that by going without a bra again and choosing to wear my shirt this time that you wanted to mess with my head again?"

"Uh huh, and that's not all that I did."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Dawn simply pulled the covers off of her completely to reveal that she was no longer wearing the shorts.

"When did you take them off?"

"As soon as I closed the door. Don't worry. They're not as revealing as the ones you wore last time. See," Dawn confided as she rolled onto her stomach and showed the underwear that completely covered her butt.

"So the plan was to tease me by sleeping without them?"

"Pretty much. What are you waiting for? Take off your jeans and get in here," Dawn ordered as she reached for and pulled the covers to where they were before but held them up.

"Just sleeping?"

"Well, I might want another kiss or two first."

Faith smirked as she turned around, took off her jeans slowly, and laid them on the same nearby chair. Dawn smiled at the revealing underwear, but not as revealing as the other time, as Faith leaned over her bag, making her shirt rise up a little to expose her butt even more. She sighed happily as the slayer got in beside her and lay down on her back. Dawn cautiously leaned over and kissed her on the lips. She didn't stop when Faith pulled her closer and ended up falling half on top of her. Since Faith wasn't pushing her away, she climbed the rest of the way on top of her and deepened the kiss enough to get Faith to open her mouth. She gently slid her tongue into the mouth below her. After one hand found its way into her hair and the other to her back, Dawn decided to take it a step further. She gently grabbed the hand on her back with her right hand and placed it on her own butt. Before Faith could object, she used the older girl's hand to squeeze her butt for a few seconds. At hearing Faith gasp, she broke the kiss, took the hand off her butt, and put it on her back. She smiled at the stunned gaze from Faith, who pushed Dawn off of her suddenly and got out of bed. It seemed like she was going to leave the room.

"Don't go, Faith," Dawn begged in a panic as she literally jumped from the bed and caught up to the slayer just as a hand touched the doorknob. When Faith didn't move, Dawn begged again, "P-Please l-look at m-me."

Faith let go of the doorknob and twirled around to see fear all over Dawn's face.

"I warned you, D. I think I'm going to go back to the family room. It's safer for both of us if I do," the brunette determined as she spun around to leave.

Dawn immediately raced past her and blocked the exit by leaning up against the door and requested a little frantically, "PLEASE stay. I'll do ANYTHING if you do."

"Anything?"

"Yes. I'll put the shorts back on. I'll even sleep in the chair or on the floor if you get back into bed."

Dawn nervously bit her bottom lip as Faith lifted up her right hand, placed it gently on Dawn's left cheek, and whispered, "Now listen carefully because I'm only going to say it once, understand?"

Dawn nodded while clearly still afraid.

"Good. You don't have to sleep on the floor or in the chair. I want you to get into bed. Don't do anything to me unless I say so, or you ask and I say it's ok."

Dawn nodded again, paced over to the bed with the slayer by her side, and crawled under the covers when Faith indicated for her to go first.

"F-Faith."

"Yeah."

"Can I…put my head on you again like we did the last time we slept together?"

"Yes, but let me turn off the light first."

Dawn waited patiently as her guest turned off the light and got onto her back. Then she carefully laid her head on the left side of Faith's chest. A happy sigh could be heard from both of them as this happened.

"Faith, can I ask for one more thing?"

"Sure."

"Could we… hold each other as we sleep?"

"Isn't it a little hard in this position?"

"You could just wrap your left arm around me. And I'll rest my left arm across your stomach. That would be enough."

"Ok."

"I-I'm s-so…," Dawn choked out before she was stopped.

"Sshh, it's five by five now, D. Just go to sleep."

"If you say so."

"I do."

Dawn drifted into sleep with the help of Faith softly rubbing her left arm.

A few hours later

Faith woke up to use the bathroom and gently rolled the teenager onto her back before heading to the door. She hadn't even left the room when she some noise coming from the blonde's bedroom. As she left, the sound got louder. She knew part of this was due to her slayer hearing and wondered how well Dawn could hear if she had been awake as well. She strolled by Buffy's door while she heard the other girl talking but wasn't sure who she was talking to at the moment. She quickly used the bathroom and then stopped in front of Buffy's door this time. She immediately noticed the normal talking had changed to low moans and gasps. It was definitely a sex dream, but she still wasn't sure yet who else was in the dream. Her curiosity of who it could be was answered with some giggling and shrieks of enjoyment from the blonde along with her name. At hearing she was the co-star of the sex dream, Faith chuckled. The final shriek had woken up the blonde because Faith had heard her get up and almost instantly got onto the hide-a-bed. She pretended to be asleep when she heard the sounds of a door opening and feet getting closer.

"Faith…are you awake?" Buffy whispered and didn't get an answer so she spoke up a little bit more, "Faith…can you hear me?"

Faith didn't budge until she heard the door close. She got up and slowly opened her eyes to see nothing but darkness. She cautiously climbed out of the bed and trekked back to Dawn's bedroom.

"Where did you go?" Dawn whispered the very moment after Faith got onto her back again.

Faith jumped up and muttered, "Damn, D, give me a heart attack why don't ya?"

"Sorry."

"I had to go to the bathroom. As I was coming back, I heard B get up for some reason. So I had to act like I was sleeping on the hide-a-bed."

"Alright," Dawn sighed before they got back into the same position she was in when she had fallen asleep earlier.

Faith had easily fallen back to peaceful sleep. However, Dawn wasn't that lucky. The very brief worry caused by the absence of her best friend sent her into a nightmare.

Dawn's nightmare

Dawn woke up to see that Faith wasn't in her bed. There were four possible places the brunette could be, the last being the worst: the bathroom, the family room, the kitchen, or Buffy's bedroom. She slowly got out of bed and shuffled over to the door. She heard mumbling coming from her sister's room as she stepped out into the hallway. She decided not to think much about it until she searched everywhere else first. In her rush, she didn't notice the door wasn't completely closed. She started with the bathroom and found it empty. As she passed through the family room in her trip to the kitchen, she saw that Faith hadn't changed her mind to sleep in the family room.

When she left the kitchen, she heard louder noise. She hoped it was only a sex dream, especially after she heard Faith's name called out. She could feel her heart starting to break at hearing that same girl telling the blonde to either be quiet or keep the noise down. She tip-toed to the room and peeked around the door that was partly open. What she saw next shocked her into silence. She found Faith's shirt and bra in one pile and Buffy's pajama pants and underwear spread out a little on the floor. When she looked up, she saw that Buffy's pajama top was unbuttoned all the way and pushed back enough so each side of her chest was about half exposed. Her back was beginning to arch off the bed as she started to moan. Dawn realized where Faith was and what she was doing by the movement under the covers and her sister's moaning. Then she saw more of Buffy's body begin to arch under the covers. After hearing the blonde let out a giggle and a shriek, Dawn opened the door all the way and entered the room.

"HOW COULD THE BOTH OF YOU DO THAT TO ME?" Dawn screamed through tears.

"OH MY GOD, DAWNIE!" Buffy replied and rapidly started buttoning the pajama top while Faith's right hand sneaked out from under the covers.

Dawn noticed that they were up just enough for Faith to discover that only the bottom half of Buffy's underwear was within reach. The same hand grabbed it and quickly disappeared. She could tell from the gasp from Buffy that Faith was helping her get the underwear back on.

"Faith, get out from under there. I think Buffy can put on the underwear herself."

"Whatever you say, D," Faith relented as she slid out from where she had been and landed on her knees briefly before standing up to face the teenager in only the one item of clothing she had on.

"Faith, put on some more clothes already," Buffy ordered after finishing putting on the underwear and getting out of the bed as well.

"Why, B, D has just seen me topless."

"Just do it, ok?" Buffy requested and glanced to her sister to find a mix of anger and hurt.

"Fine," Faith consented and grabbed both her shirt and bra but only put on the bra and added just as casually, "I guess this means the date is off, huh, D?"

"That's right," Dawn responded after smacking Faith hard across her left cheek, "What else did you do besides leave marks on each other's necks and what I caught you doing?"

"Just a little kissing and groping of each other's chests, and I got my fingers inside of her before going down on her," Faith informed.

"You're not my best friend anymore or even a friend right now. I'm not sure when we'll be that way again if we ever will be."

It made Dawn feel good that Faith appeared sad that she had said that. She turned to find her sister standing almost in front of her.

"Dawnie, I'm so so…."

Both slayers were stunned when Buffy's apology was interrupted by a smack to her left cheek as well.

"Sorry, for what? Breaking my heart by having sex with my best friend, who I HAD a date with tomorrow, or that I caught you?"

"Both," the blonde claimed with tears that matched her sister's as she placed her left hand on her cheek.

"You're the only REAL family I have left and you do this? I trusted you, and you broke it in one of the worst ways possible. I don't know if I can ever trust you again. As soon as I can, I'm out of here. Not just this apartment but out of this city and country. Maybe I'll go to Brazil, move in with your best friend, and have sex with her so you can fully understand the pain I'm in. I could have handled it if Faith and I weren't going to start dating. You knew how I felt about her."

"DAWNIE, PLEASE DON'T GO! I will do anything to make it up to you."

"I don't know if you can. I hope you two will be happy together. Once I'm gone, you can have as much sex as you want. I hope it was worth it."

Dawn stared at both of them as Buffy sat down on the bed and cried harder. Faith tried not to act not as upset as Buffy but was clearly fighting a few tears at what her love for sex had made her do to her former best friend. Dawn knew both were watching as she left the room and slammed the door behind her. The second she closed the door, Dawn woke up in her own bed. She sat up and began to cry.

A few seconds later

"Did you have a nightmare or something?"

"Yeah," the younger girl revealed through a choked up tone.

"Is there anything I can do for ya?"

"Yes, get out of my bed," Dawn sobbed lightly.

"Why, I didn't do anything wrong?"

"Yes, you did," Dawn stated and paused by the gawk of confusion, "Not right now, in the dream I mean."

"I wouldn't do anything to hurt you," Faith said hopefully comforting her sad best friend while hugging her, "You want to talk about it?"

"YOU want to talk about it?"

"Yeah, if it will help."

"I…C-Can it w-wait until the morning?"

"Sure," Faith agreed as she fell back onto the bed with Dawn still in her arms.

Dawn was happy that Faith didn't see the tears that came after that.

Later that morning

Dawn woke up Faith in enough time before Buffy was going to get up. She eyed her friend until the door was closed. Then she went back to sleep. As she left the bedroom, Faith was feeling scared. She had NEVER felt this way. The old her would have probably had her way with Dawn and left the moment Dawn had fallen asleep. She wouldn't have woken up the other to get dressed either, leaving Buffy to find her sister naked on the bed a possibility. The old Faith might have even spied through the window to catch the blonde's reaction. For a second she thought about cancelling the date plans. The second thought of Dawn feeling hurt when she did prevented her from doing that. They would go on the date, but she would be very careful of how the date went. Being careful wasn't something she had done that often in the past. The brunette sat up on the hide-a-bed when she concluded she wasn't going to be able to sleep. She debated putting on the pants again and decided to go without them before walking to the kitchen in a search to find something to eat. She was leaning over and scanning the fridge when she heard a soft voice.

"Good morning, F-Faith," Buffy murmured.

"Morning, B. Have any dreams last night?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, why do you think I had a dream?" Buffy asked as Faith whipped around and stared at the blonde in front of her.

"Uhh…Faith…," Faith grunted before changing it to a moan, "Mmm…OOhh…FFaaiitth. Oh god, don't stop." Then Faith paused long enough to let out a girlish giggle and a gasp before shrieking softly a few times so she wouldn't wake Dawn if the younger Summers had managed to fall asleep again and finished with, "Of course all of that was a little bit louder than how I said it. I just didn't want to wake D if you hadn't."

The blonde tried to hide a blush as she shuffled over to the coffee maker.

"So you WERE awake?"

"Yeah."

"Then why didn't you answer me?"

"Really didn't feel like it at the time."

"Ok."

"I was obviously good in the dream, but exactly how good?"

"What?"

"How GOOD was I?"

"What makes you think I'd tell you that?"

"Because I'll just keep buggin' ya until you do tell me."

"Fine, it was the best SEX dream I've ever had. Satisfied?"

"Just about. Was I better than Angel?" Faith asked and assumed when Buffy remained quiet, "I was, wasn't I?"

"Faith," the older Summers groaned.

"The sooner you tell me, the better it'll be."

"Yes," the other girl mumbled just loud enough for the brunette to hear and laugh.

"So what made you stutter when you came in? Was it seeing me after having that dream, or was it seeing my underwear while I bent over and checked out what's in your fridge?"

"Faith," Buffy lightly groaned a second time from where she was pouring coffee. She spotted a familiar expression on the other slayer's face when she glanced at her, "You're thinking about our night back at the Hyperion again, aren't you?"

"I wouldn't be if you hadn't had that sex dream about me."

"Shut up," Buffy repeated at a slightly louder volume as she put the coffee pot back.

"It's ok. I dreamed of you once before too."

"Really, when?" Buffy yelped after gawking at her.

"The night we almost had sex."

"Since I brought it up, accidentally of course, what would you do right now if what we said last night was still the same? I mean about you and Dawn only being friends with no chance of getting together?"

"I would get right behind you the moment I noticed your back to me. Then I would grope you like I did the day after my birthday but with one hand on your chest this time."

Buffy gulped as Faith got a lot closer but relaxed as the other girl only reached for a coffee mug for herself.

"Then?"

"Depending on how much you would have liked it, I would have probably started kissing or nuzzling the right side of your neck. As I did that, my hands would begin unbuttoning the top. After that, I would twirl you around so I could kiss you while hands gently moved over your bra and stomach. I might have attempted to get them under your bra, even if I had to undo the back. As soon as I could have got you alone, I would try to do what I couldn't do back in the hotel room because you conked out on me. It wouldn't matter whether it was your bed, the couch, or even on the table behind me," Faith described, getting the blonde to gulp again at Faith's breath reaching her skin, "And I think you might have let me. I would have us keep going until we worked up a sweat. Not sure if I could have gotten you to join me in the shower though."

"You really think I would have let you do that?"

"After we caught you with Satsu, yeah. I bet you would've liked it too. The new me won't because I told Dawn I wouldn't and meant it. I will also say this. You snooze, you lose," Faith answered before pausing to chuckle, "I even gave you a second chance, but you didn't take it. "

"H-How w-was it? The dream you had about me I mean."

"The only way it could have been better is if it hadn't been a dream. You got to love that slayer stamina."

"That's what you said at the end of mine."

"Which part?"

"The part about the slayer stamina. You also said it was rock 'em, sock 'em. What's so funny?"

"That's what I told Robin when we were talking. You know, when we were getting ready for the fight."

"Please don't tell anyone about either dream, ESPECIALLY Dawn."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't know if I could handle what my friends; I mean our friends would say. And Dawn really likes you, so it would hurt her."

"I won't."

As they drank the coffee, Faith had gotten Buffy to tell her everything about the sex dream. In the dream, it was a replay of their conversation the day after Faith's birthday. However, Faith had managed to get Buffy to join her on the other side of the door before the blonde had a chance to button and zip up her pants back up. Immediately after the door had been closed, Faith had pulled the blonde down the stairs and pushed her back to the wall beside it. She had wasted no time in sliding her right hand inside the front of Buffy's underwear. After almost a minute of that, Buffy had assumed Faith would either try to get Buffy's other clothes off, starting with her shirt or start working on her own. That's not what she had done though. With a quick and hard tug, Faith had yanked down the pants and underwear at the same time. Faith proceeded to go down on her as her hands cupped and squeezed the blonde's butt.

The brunette gave her a huge smirk after Buffy confessed that the dream didn't stop there and only the wall behind her had kept the blonde upright the entire time. Faith held in a laugh when Buffy admitted that she had used her right hand to muffle the sounds Faith was bringing out of her and her left hand had held Faith's head in place. Her former arch enemy had gotten the blonde to follow her to the mats on the floor. During the rest of the dream, Faith had been able to do the same thing she had done less than a minute earlier. This time, she had gotten her completely naked. The final shriek she had heard before Buffy had woken up happened as Faith got a few of Buffy's fingers inside her body. The duo instantly moved on to other topics: how Dawn was doing with school, Willow's frequent bad luck with girls she met, the current status of the other slayers they were sending out to fight around the world, and things they saw in the news. When they were both ready for a second cup, Buffy volunteered to be the one to get it for both of them. While they ware drinking it, they heard Dawn coming into the kitchen. What they saw next put a big smirk on Faith's face and shock on Buffy's.

"What's the matter, Buffy, do I have something on my face or a bad case of bed head?"

"No. It's what you don't have on that's the problem."

"Huh?"

"Go put on some more clothes."

"Why?"

Faith gazed at Dawn as Buffy instructed her to look down for a second. Dawn gasped and blushed when she discovered she hadn't put on the shorts or a bra before leaving her room. Dawn rushed back to the bedroom. Buffy growled when she caught their friend blatantly checking out her sister's butt. Faith was imaging some of the different ways she could get Dawn out of her clothes, each ending with Buffy catching them and trying to kick her ass after that.

"Would you mind NOT checking out my sister's butt right now?"

"Oh, come on. I think she looks sexy in just my tank top and her underwear, don't you?" Faith commented as her previous thoughts of seducing Dawn and Buffy trying to kick her ass afterwards disappeared.

"FAITH! That's my sister you're talking about like that."

"I know. Your sister's a hottie, B. And it wasn't just her ass I was checking out. Did you see what she WASN'T wearing underneath that shirt?"

"I swear to God. If you don't stop, I'll…"

"I'll stop, alright," Faith promised with a laugh.

"That's probably a good idea, Faith," Dawn advised after she returned around a few minutes later and became silent as she recalled everything that had happened last night.

"Is there something wrong?" Buffy questioned after seeing the sad glimpse between Dawn and Faith.

"Why do you ask?" Dawn muttered as she grabbed the cereal, a bowl, a spoon, and set them on the table before heading to the fridge for some milk.

"You seem like something something's bothering you, and I saw that look you gave Faith. Did you have a nightmare?"

Both slayers noticed how the younger girl froze with one hand holding the milk and the other on the door.

"You did. You want to talk about it?"

Faith smirked at how she had said the same thing last night and remembering both sisters had dreams about her last night but stopped at the fact that they were both different.

"I guess so," Dawn mumbled before eyeing the brunette again.

"Wait, Faith knows you had a nightmare? How does she know that?"

"Because I heard her last night after using the bathroom," Faith explained and finished with a wink directed to Buffy that Dawn didn't catch.

"What happened?" Buffy inquired while she held back a blush at guessing it meant that Faith had heard hers before Dawn's.

"In the dream, I caught you and Faith…having sex in your bedroom."

"Can you tell us more?" Buffy quizzed nervously.

"Like what…details?"

"Yes."

"Ok. But you two can't say anything until I'm finished telling you about my dream. And, Buffy, you can't get mad about what I'm going to tell you right now."

Buffy wasn't sure what to think at the concerned reaction from Faith.

"Ok, what is it?"

"Faith didn't sleep on the hide-a-bed last night."

"Where did she sleep?"

"We shared my bed last night."

"But…But I saw you on the hide-a-bed last night."

"I was coming back from the bathroom when I heard you get up for some unknown reason. Since I told you that I was sleeping there last night, I thought I'd better act like I had been," Faith announced as she realized she was still in just underwear and a t-shirt and finished with a second wink toward the blonde that was also missed by Dawn.

Buffy almost growled at the brunette, "Was that your idea?"

"No, it was Dawn's. All we did was sleep, B."

"You two share a bed while you're both half naked and expect me to believe nothing happened?"

"We kissed for a little bit, but that's all, I swear. Besides, I wasn't half naked. The only thing I wasn't wearing was pants," Faith insisted, "Now get back to telling us about your dream, D."

"In the dream, I caught you and Buffy…having sex in her bed."

"And?" Buffy cut in.

"Your pajama top was completely unbuttoned. Your underwear and pajama pants were on the floor by the bed. So either you put the shirt back on after taking off the bra, or you managed to keep the top on while taking off the bra. I saw the middle of your chest. Faith's shirt and bra were on the floor as well, and she was under the covers. Your back arched off the bed as Faith started to…"

"As I went down on her," Faith interrupted this time and couldn't hold back a smirk at that, but it ended when Dawn glared at her.

"Yeah, and Buffy seemed to enjoy it with the noise she was making. I came into the room and asked how you could do that to me with a scream while I cried," Dawn hesitated for a few seconds at the gapes from the older two and continued, "You tried to help Buffy put some of her underwear back on. I told you to get out of bed because my sister could put on the underwear herself. Then she ordered you to put on some more clothes since you were still topless. You did that like you didn't care that I saw you without a shirt or bra on as you guessed that the date was off. I said you were right after I smacked you as hard as I could. Before I said that we were no longer friends and that I didn't know when we would be again if ever, I got you to tell me what else you did."

"And that would be?" Faith asserted.

"You both kissed and groped each other's chest, left marks on each other necks, and you got your fingers inside of Buffy," Dawn confessed and frowned at the smirk that she got from Faith.

"What else?" Buffy voiced softly after smacking the other slayer on the arm.

"Then you tried to apologize, but I smacked you before you could finish. I said that the only real family member I had left broke my trust in one of the worst possible ways, and I didn't know if I could ever trust you again. I also told you the same thing when you asked if there was any way that you could make it up to me. I threatened to move to Brazil to live with Willow and have sex with her so that you'd know how I felt at that moment."

Faith chose to be the one to break the silence that followed.

"Buffy loves you, and I really care about you. Do you really think we would do something like to you?" Faith grilled and added at more hesitation from her best friend, "You do, don't you? I can't believe after everything Buffy has done for you your entire life and everything I've done since reaching L.A., you could think that. Maybe we should forget about the date and have Red teleport me back to Scotland."

"NO, don't go. I still want to go on the date with you."

"Then why did you have that dream?"

"Because…Because I was scared, ok? I've never been on a date before that didn't involve being under a spell. I was afraid of how it could go wrong, I still remember the night of your last birthday, and it made me think that maybe you'd really rather be with Buffy instead of me."

"That was before we got to be best friends. Now if I end up with anyone, it will probably be you."

"Probably?"

"Yeah, if your feelings for me don't change."

"So we're ok then? I mean the date's still on?"

"Sure, D, we're five by five."

"Good."

"I'm ok, too," Buffy assured, "Just as long as you know I would never do that to you, Dawnie."

"I know."


	17. Chapter 17

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 17

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: This is what happened after their talk up to the end of their first date.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: Ltlconf, thanks again for yet another extensive review. I like showing how caring and considerate Faith can be when given a real chance. That even the "monster" they claimed her to be is capable of just as much or more than the hypocritical Scoobies can be. That almost anyone can change and grow, from the "crazy" Faith to the "uptight" Buffy. I didn't even really think about the unspoken implication that you talked about. As for the fatigue, it's because of how many stories I have written and feeling I'm not getting enough reviews for some of them considering the amount they were put on a couple lists. I know I shouldn't keep thinking about it, but I still do. I guess if I write another, it should be Buffy/Faith AKA Fuffy. I'm definitely not making any promises though. There are only a few chapters left after this one. So if there's anyone that would like to be thanked in the author's notes, either for the first time or again, your time is almost up. Since I don't know how soon movies are released in Europe after being released the United States, I'm going to assume that they were out around the same time.

* * *

><p>Around half an hour later<p>

The trio had eaten their cereal without another word. After Buffy was finished, she put her bowl and spoon in the dishwasher and confirmed that she was going to take her shower first. As soon as they heard the bathroom door close, Dawn and Faith put their stuff in the dishwasher as well and started a make out on the couch. After Buffy was done in the bathroom, Dawn unnecessarily raced into it and closed the door. When Buffy asked what was up with her sister, Faith told her that Dawn was probably getting a little excited or nervous about the date. While the slayers sat on the couch, Buffy was able to get Faith to admit she was feeling exactly the same way. As Faith focused on what was on the television, Buffy actually began to feel jealous,

The last time she came close to what she thought the other two were feeling right now was when she was with Riley. Her former enemy was changing so much, and it was her little sister that was playing a big part in it. Faith got off the couch and made her way to the bathroom as soon as she heard the door open. The sight of Dawn only in a towel almost made her mouth water. Dawn froze on the spot at the sight of the brunette quickly approaching. She gulped as Faith stopped about three inches in front of her. She held in her breath while Faith glanced down at the slightly exposed cleavage then back up to her face. She carefully pushed the younger girl up against the wall. She guessed that the blonde was watching but didn't care. She wanted to tease Dawn a little before their first date. The brunette then got as close as she could without touching her and kissed Dawn softly on the lips before she worked her right leg between both of Dawn's. The feeling of the leg pressed up along the front of the towel made Dawn gulp again.

"If your sister wasn't here right now, I might be tempted to pull your towel off so I could see the rest of that beautiful body of yours," Faith whispered into Dawn's left ear as she suddenly gripped Dawn's hips gently, making the teenager gasp this time.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't grope my sister in front of me," Buffy requested firmly.

"Then close your eyes or go back to your bedroom," Faith playfully ordered before stepping away from Dawn, kissing her just as softly on the right cheek, going into the bathroom, and closing the door quietly.

Faith had smirked at Dawn instantly touching where she had been kissed with her right hand while she closed the door. When Dawn looked straight ahead, she saw her sister smiling at her. Dawn ran to her bedroom after blushing at seeing that her sister was still watching her. The blonde then turned her eyes back to the television while giggling at how cute it had been to see her sister act that way. It was quickly followed by a second moment of jealousy and another giggle that she had gotten jealous of her sister. Then she thought that she really needed to find someone herself. It wouldn't matter whether it would be an actual relationship, a brief fling, or even a one night stand.

Meanwhile, what Faith had done to Dawn had gotten the slayer worked up more. She released the tension when she couldn't hold it in anymore and muffled the sounds she made by biting her left hand at the same time. After she was done, she went over the plans she had for the date. She could feel her heart beating faster as she actually got a little nervous that even with the planning, something could go wrong and the night could be ruined. The thought it could make Dawn never want to go out on another date with her worried her even more.

Around twenty minutes later

"Can I come in, Dawn?" Faith asked as she knocked on Dawn's bedroom door.

"Sure, give me a…"

"You're definitely a hottie," Faith claimed as she walked in and quickly closed the door, catching the teenager in her underwear while reaching for a robe.

"I didn't say come in. I was trying to tell you to give me a minute," Dawn growled as she spun around and held the robe to the front of her body

"I thought you'd be dressed by now. What were you doing for so….Oh, was Dawnie being a bad girl?"

"What…No…of course not," Dawn hissed at Faith's assumption and the smirk that came with it.

"I guess I'll get dressed in the bathroom."

Dawn watched as the brunette grabbed her clothes and headed back to the bathroom. Both girls joined Buffy in the family room about five minutes later.

"I've got some things I need to do before the date. I'll be back later."

"How much later?" the Summers girls challenged together.

"I'm not sure. It might be awhile."

"Ok, so when should I be ready and how dressed up?"

"Around six thirty and halfway between casual and formal should be good enough."

"I guess Dawnie and I could go shopping for a few hours. You know, do the sisterly bonding thing."

"Cool. Well, I'll catch you later then," Faith announced before kissing Dawn on the lips and leaving the apartment.

"So what do you want to do now?" Buffy inquired after the door closed.

"I need to figure what I'm going to wear," Dawn determined as she raced back to her bedroom.

Buffy chased after her and leaned against the wall as Dawn took almost every item out of her closet and a few things out of her dresser. Then it got more amusing to the blonde as she observed her sister strip down to her underwear to see what she looked like in clothes she had worn many times.

Another twenty minutes later, Dawn's bedroom

Buffy giggled as Dawn was still trying every combination to find the perfect outfit.

"Dawn, calm down. You have PLENTY of time. It's only 9:30 AM. You have NINE hours before you need to be ready. What's with the being all stressy?"

"In case you already forgot, this is my FIRST date. If you don't count what's his name."

"You mean RJ, who Xander, Willow, and I saw you grinding with that night at the Bronze?"

"Exactly. And it's also the first with a girl. I'm pretty sure Faith hasn't gone out on many real dates or any. I want it to be perfect for both of us."

"Nothing's perfect. Just try to relax."

"Can I see what I look like in some of yours? Maybe I'll find something in there I will like more or I can mix it with something of mine."

"I guess."

In a short time, Dawn had gone through all of Buffy's clothes. She had even mixed the two wardrobes together several times. She settled on a bright blue blouse, a black skirt that went to almost two inches above her knees, and not too tall heels.

"How do I look, Buffy?"

"You look…r-really b-beautiful, Dawnie," Buffy said through a choked up voice before shedding a tear.

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"Then why are you all weepy?"

"Because my little sister is growing up so fast."

"I'm not that little anymore. I'm taller than you," Dawn teased her.

"You know what I mean," Buffy declared before giggling along with her sister, "So shopping, yes or no?"

"Yes," Dawn agreed as she took off the clothes, set them aside for later, changed into something else to wear until the date, and put everything else back.

Buffy smiled as the younger girl did this. They left and went to where most of the stores were and spent the next few hours talking about anything that came into their minds.

Around 12:30 PM, Buffy and Dawn's apartment

Faith unlocked the front door with the keys Dawn had lent her. She pushed open the door a little and stuck her head inside to see a currently empty apartment while holding the flowers she had gotten for Dawn behind her back.

"Dawn, Buffy, are you here?" Faith called out loud enough for them to hear and waited for a minute to make sure.

When all she got was silence, she stepped inside and closed the door with her left hand. She brought the bouquet in her right hand closer to her face to smell them again. She held them as she removed her boots with her other hand. Even though she didn't know too much about flowers, she thought the ones she had at the moment were nice enough that her date would like them. It had been an ok day outside, sunny but not as warm as she hoped. So she thought the linen closet was a safe spot to hide them.

As she went over the plans she had confirmed for that night, she debated on what to wear. She knew jeans and a shirt wouldn't do, and she didn't wear dresses. Since she didn't own any really nice shirts, she hoped either one of the sisters would let her borrow one. She would wear that, leather pants, her usual boots, and a leather jacket. She was cleaning the boots as the other two arrived home.

"Hi, Faith," Dawn greeted her with an innocent smile as she and Buffy removed their shoes as well.

"How long have you been back?" Buffy prodded as they joined Faith on the couch

"Around twenty minutes," Faith answered from one end of the couch while finishing the second boot and set it down by the other beside the couch.

"So where did you go?" the teenager questioned casually to hide her curiosity, which the brunette sensed easily.

"Just confirming the plans for our date."

"Care to tell me about it?"

"Other than it's the clichéd dinner and a movie, not really. Don't give me that look. The Summers fake pout doesn't work on this girl."

"Fine. Will I like it?"

"That's up to you. So what's the movie choice for tonight, a chick flick or a thriller?"

"Chick flick?" Dawn nearly scoffed.

"You know, romantic comedies where a guy and a girl meet and quicker than normal fall in love. The same old plots with different titles," Faith chuckled.

The sisters tried to be offended at Faith mocking that type of movie, a type they liked sometimes, but couldn't hide the smiles.

"What are they both rated?"

"The chick flick is PG-13 and the thriller is R."

"What if they won't let me into the R one?"

"Then I'll flirt with the cashier."

"Even if they're a girl?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I don't want to have to worry about that or seeing you flirt while on a date with me; so I choose the chick flick."

"Whatever makes you happy, Could I borrow a nice shirt from either one of you? Mine are mostly tank tops or t-shirts. Never did the date thing except for a few times with Robin. My wardrobe is kind of limited."

"Told you so," Dawn replied to the blonde to her left.

"Told her what?"

"That you probably haven't gone on many if any real dates."

"Tonight is the first of mine with a girl."

"No pressure," Buffy joked.

"So can I borrow one?" Faith requested calmly.

"Sure," Buffy responded as she got off the couch and led the brunette to her room.

Less than a minute later, Buffy's bedroom

"So can you tell me about the date?"

"Not a chance."

"Why not?" the blonde complained lightly as she opened the closet door and sat down on her bed.

"Because you may be able to lie to our friends, but I can tell when you are. You'll probably tell your sister. Then it will be ruined before it even begins," Faith revealed as she suddenly removed her shirt.

She heard a soft gasp from the blonde as her back was to the other girl. After each choice, she would ask Buffy for a second opinion. The slayer would usually smile, but she let the brunette know when something didn't look great. Buffy remembered how frantic Dawn had gotten over an outfit, so she wanted to make sure the girls were evenly matched as far as how nicely they dressed. She noticed though when Faith glanced at a few dresses.

"You can try them on if you want to."

"Dresses aren't my style, B."

"Come on, I saw you staring at them and the only dress I've seen you in is the one at that high school homecoming dance years ago."

"I was only picturing what you looked like in them."

"Please," Buffy playfully pleaded, "You don't have to keep them on that long."

"Fine, but only for a few seconds."

"Good, I can close my eyes if…," the blonde tried to offer but was silenced by the sight of Faith quickly pulling down her jeans.

"It's ok, B. We've seen each other in underwear, remember?"

"Oh, right," Buffy relented and tried not to stare as Faith leaned over while taking her pants off the rest of the way.

Faith then twirled around to grab one of the dresses and held back a chuckle at hearing the blonde softly gulping at her wearing underwear more revealing than what Dawn was wearing earlier that day.

"You can ogle, B, I don't mind."

"I wasn't. You were just in my field of vision. I was trying to see which dress you were going to try on first."

"See, that's something our other friends would believe. That still sounds weird sometimes."

"What does?" Buffy muttered as Faith got into the first dress, which was a black, sleeveless one that stopped just above the knee and showed slight cleavage.

"Calling them OUR friends instead of YOUR friends. It's a nice change though."

"I think so too. Faith, you look amazing in it. You should totally wear it. It would definitely surprise Dawn."

"I already got a few of those planned. Damn, you didn't hear that, ok?"

"Hear what?" Buffy stated between smiles.

"Nothing…Nothing at all."

The next one was a red one that was also sleeveless, had smaller shoulder straps, was around an inch shorter, and showed more cleavage than the first one. They were both very flattering to Faith's body.

"You think your sister would like this one better?"

"Possibly," the blonde admitted and couldn't hold in a blush at how she had checked out the brunette from head to toe.

"Thanks, but maybe another time though," Faith mentioned as she just as comfortably took the dress off and hung it up.

"So which one is it going to be?"

"This one," Faith decided as she held up a black and red blouse that exposed a tasteful amount of cleavage.

"What about the rest?"

"Some nice, leather pants."

After enough time had passed, they began to get ready for their date. Most of it had been spent watching TV, but they were able to get in some make out time when Buffy got caught up in a call she had gotten from Willow. As soon as Buffy went into her room and closed the door, Faith and Dawn had begun to make out. Faith had been barely able to fight the urge to do more than kiss Dawn.

6:30 PM, the family room

The girls entered the living room at the same time. Buffy had let Faith change in her room. Both girls re-applied some make-up before entering the family room at the same time.

"You both look great," Buffy complimented.

"You're wrong, B. I look great, but Dawn looks amazing."

"Never pictured you as a sweet talker, Faith," Buffy giggled.

"Me either."

"Ditto," Dawn chimed in as she fought an oncoming blush, "Got any other surprises for me?"

"Maybe a few. Oh, both of you close your eyes for a minute."

"Why?" both sisters replied.

"It's one of the surprises," Faith confessed and walked to the closet when they did as asked. Faith held them in her right hand as she commanded, "Ok, open them."

Buffy and Dawn opened them at the same time to see a beautiful bouquet in Faith's hands.

"They're beautiful, Faith. This is so sweet. Thank you," Dawn told her before leaning to kiss Faith softly on the lips.

"Not as sweet and beautiful as you, D."

"Aw," both Summers blurted out before they could stop themselves.

"I swear if you tell anyone I said that. I'll disappear and make sure that even Red won't be able to find me with magic," Faith warned after stopping the blush that had started.

It was a very light shade of red that lasted for only two seconds. But it was long enough for the sisters to catch it.

"Wow, we got Faith to blush. Remember this day, Dawnie. Friday; January 30th, 2004; Faith Lehane officially blushed for the first time."

"Done," Dawn giggled and added when they got a frown from the brunette, "Oh, come on, Faithy. Seeing something like that from you is extremely rare. Almost like seeing a comet or Buffy being modest." _Faithy? What in the hell made me say that. Ok, sure what she did was sweet, but Faithy, really?_

"Hey," Buffy yelped suddenly, "Since when did this become making fun of Buffy?"

"I meant what I said, D, and you can add what just happened to that list."

"Alright. Buffy and I won't tell anyone unless you say so," Dawn conceded after a very convincing expression and continued when Buffy tried to object, "We won't. Right, Buffy?"

"Right," Buffy complied when she noticed the fear from Dawn that Faith would keep her word.

"We should get going, now," Faith instructed.

"Can I get one picture, please?" Buffy begged.

"No, this isn't a high school dance," Faith reminded the blonde.

"Yeah, Buffy," Dawn grumbled even though she hoped her sister could convince her date since she didn't want to be the one to do that.

"I promise you that you'll thank me later," Buffy voiced confidently.

"Fine," Dawn sighed, "Humor her, ok?"

"Fine," Faith echoed before pulling the teenager to her just like a prom picture.

Buffy happily took their picture before Faith focused on her, "So what have you got planned for tonight?"

"Will's coming over. We'll probably pig out on junk food, talk about boys, or in her case, girls. You know…girly stuff," Buffy divulged and laughed.

Faith smirked and cut in, "Then strip down to your underwear and have a good, old fashioned pillow or tickle fight?"

Buffy gasped before mumbling, "Perv."

"Can we go now?" Dawn groaned.

"Yes," Faith consented and led her to the door.

When Faith wasn't paying attention, Dawn peeked over her shoulder and silently voiced, "Thank you."

Buffy smiled at her sister and watched from the window as the other slayer flagged down a cab. However, she rolled her eyes when she saw Faith pat Dawn's butt as the teen got into the cab while glancing up at Buffy.

Later, a restaurant.

"Faith, what are we going to do if the people here only speak Italian?"

"You mean you haven't been to this restaurant before?"

"Buffy and I really don't really go out to eat. We either cook or have it delivered. This one doesn't do delivery, and my Italian isn't as good as it should be by now."

"We'll worry about that when we get in there."

Dawn quizzed the host as soon as they saw him, "Do you speak English?"

"Yes," he greeted with a smile and shared a smirk with Faith while Dawn was checking out the restaurant.

The younger girl repeated the same to their server and only got Italian. When Faith saw her start to get nervous, she spoke to the woman in perfect Italian.

"What kind of soda do you want, Dawn?"

"Sprite."

Faith smirked and informed the woman quickly before she handed them menus and dashed off.

"What about our order?"

"I told her we might need a minute or two."

"Ok," Dawn murmured before going through the menu with a smile.

The server returned with their sodas a few minutes later and smiled as Faith gave the woman their order.

"How did you learn to speak Italian so well?"

"One of the Italian slayers taught me, and I thanked her by having sex with her," Faith lied before she confided, "I'm kidding, but I know she wanted to."

"How do you know that?"

"Because she asked," Faith chuckled.

Shortly after their food arrived, a guy with a violin strolled over. Dawn gulped as Faith conversed again. He immediately began to play a song that got Dawn to feel butterflies in her stomach and a warm feeling through her entire body. Faith handed him some money after he finished. They shared a smile before he headed to a different part of the restaurant. As Dawn gazed at her in awe, Faith made her next move. She used a fork to grab a long noodle of her pasta off the plate before grabbing it with a few fingers.

"Faith, this is a restaurant; use a fork," Dawn demanded softly.

She was silenced by Faith asking her to put one end in her mouth and start eating slowly. As she did, Faith did the same with her end. Dawn instantly realized what Faith was doing and wanted to react like she and Buffy did when she got the compliment back at the apartment. When their lips gently touched, Faith pulled back and let Dawn finish the last of the noodle. The people of them laughed, cheered, and let out happy sighs at the couple's reenactment of the scene from _The Lady and the Tramp_.

"How long had you been planning that?" Dawn wondered as she wiped around her mouth with a napkin.

"When I made the reservation. Oh, and the server does speak English: I just wanted to impress you."

"Well, consider me impressed," Dawn commented before leaning over the table and kissing her on the lips.

They finished the meal and left the restaurant. Faith convinced her that they should walk. She had mentioned that it wasn't that far away, and it was a nice night. Dawn went along with it and sighed as the brunette held her hand the entire way. Faith continued making the other girl happy by buying tickets for the so called "chick flick". They headed to the snack counter, where they got a few more sodas and enough popcorn for them to share. Faith led her to their seats, insisted that Dawn sit first, and sat to her left.

As they viewed the movie, their fingers occasionally brushed against each other in the bag of popcorn. Dawn felt a shiver of excitement each time it happened. She would also glance at the slayer to see a smirk on her face. When the movie was over, they silently got up and left the theater. Faith distracted her by pointing to something off in the distance and flagged down a guy with a horse drawn carriage coming closer with her other hand. Dawn almost jumped as he stopped right in front of them.

"How about it, D? You up for a carriage ride instead of a cab?"

Dawn could only nod as Faith once again talked in Italian to the driver. Seconds later, they were off and ended up taking a carriage ride that lasted close to half an hour before heading back to the apartment building. During the ride, the couple had snuggled a little under the blanket that had been in the carriage. They had used half of it to cover Dawn's legs. Dawn had gasped when Faith's right hand had slid under the blanket and landed on her left knee. She began to smile as Faith didn't attempt to move it. After they stopped in front of the apartment building, Faith took her hand off Dawn's knee, handed the driver some money, stepped out first, and helped her date out of the carriage. Dawn gasped again as Faith grabbed her by the hips while the younger girl stood on the end of the carriage and set her down on her feet about two inches in front of her. Instantly after the driver left, Faith wrapped her arms around Dawn's waist and kissed her on the lips. Dawn reacted by wrapping her arms lightly around Faith's neck and intensifying the kiss.

"So, did you have a good time, Dawn?" Faith began after breaking the kiss.

"Best. Date. Ever," Dawn admitted before resting her head on Faith's left shoulder, "I don't want it to end yet."

"Neither do I, but it will have to soon. Is that offer to sleep in your bed again still on?"

"Of course," Dawn assured before accidentally letting out a yawn.

"We better get you to bed," Faith asserted before picking up the girl and attempted to carry her upstairs like Dawn was a princess.

"I think I can handle the walk upstairs," Dawn reminded her as she tried to get out of the hold Faith had on her.

"Just go along with it," Faith insisted lightly while successfully preventing her date from getting away from her.

"Fine," her date agreed and kissed Faith's left cheek before giggling and resting her head on Faith's left shoulder for the second time.


	18. Chapter 18

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 18

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: PG-13

Summary: This is what happened after they got back into the apartment and the following dates.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

* * *

><p>Almost three minutes later<p>

Dawn almost yelped when Faith had patted her on the butt after setting her back down on her feet. She had yelped softly when Faith had done that while they were getting into the cab at the beginning of the date. Faith just smirked as she waited for Dawn to unlock the door. They had shared a kiss before entering to find the family room dark and empty. This confused them until they began to pass by Buffy's bedroom. Faith abruptly stopped in her tracks and switched her attention back and forth between the door and Dawn.

"What's the matter, Faith?"

"B's crying. Softly, but still crying."

"Wh-Why?"

"I don't know; let's find out."

Dawn kept her mouth shut as Faith slowly opened the door. Dawn gasped at seeing both girls in the bed. Willow was asleep, but Buffy let the tears come. She found out that the couple was eyeing her curiously. She briefly lifted up the covers to show that both girls were in pajamas before laying them back down and quietly mouthed, "Later, I promise." Faith quickly closed the door to see Dawn clearly worried.

About a minute later, Dawn's bedroom

"No worries, D, we'll find out what happened tomorrow. We should get ready for bed."

"Faith, what were you expecting to happen when we got in here?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Did you think by doing all of those sweet things that I'd have sex with you?"

"No, I wanted to show you how well I could treat you if given the chance. As much as I would love to have sex with you, I know you're not ready. So we'll just sleep."

At hearing that from Faith, Dawn couldn't stop a few tears.

"Don't cry. It's ok…REALLY. Are you going to be ok?"

Dawn nodded and froze as Faith got down to just underwear. Then the brunette turned around, bent over her bag, pulled out a t-shirt to sleep in, and put it on. It ended up covering only half of her butt. Faith surprised her again by keeping her back to Dawn as she carefully laid the clothes she had taken off on a nearby chair and promised to stay that way to give the teenager some privacy as she changed. Faith smirked when Dawn announced that it was alright for the other girl to turn around. Faith saw that Dawn had chosen shorts and a t-shirt. After that, the girls shuffled into the bathroom to brush their teeth. They silently climbed into bed together. Even though Faith had told her not to worry, she still did. Faith eased this by kissing her again on the lips and the forehead. The final surprise came when Faith pulled her into a hug after turning off the light. They smirked at each other as the moonlight from the partially opened, window blind cast a glow over their faces.

"I never pictured you as a cuddler, Faith."

"Me either," Faith informed as she brushed a few stray hairs out of Dawn's face, "You can't tell anyone that either. Now, go to sleep."

"Ok."

"Dawn."

"Yeah."

"You will let me know when you are ready, right?"

"You'll be the second to know. Why are you asking?"

"Because I want to be ready when you are."

"You always are," Dawn teased with slight sarcasm.

Faith arched an eyebrow at her before both broke into laughter.

"I guess I am," Faith asserted as she lay down on her back.

"Someday, I will be too," Dawn promised as she was pulled into the same position they were in last night.

As soon as Dawn was sure the other girl was asleep, she let out a few more tears. She couldn't imagine letting this girl out of her life again.

Saturday morning, around 8:00 AM, the kitchen

Faith put on her pants before she and Dawn made their way into the kitchen. They noticed the other two sitting at the table and drinking coffee as soon as they came in.

"Hi, Willow."

"Hey, Red."

"Hi, I guess I should be going," the redhead exclaimed before trying to get up to leave.

"Finish your coffee," Buffy demanded as she kept the witch in place by holding her by her left wrist.

"Let go, Buff. They're going to want to know what happened last night," Willow argued.

"We already know what B had had planned, but we want to know what made her cry last night," Faith revealed before seeing the blonde glare at her, "Sorry, B."

"You cried? I know it was bad, but I thought I would be the only one to do that."

"You're my best friend, Will. When something like that happens to you, I can't help but feel sad or angry."

"What happened?" Dawn shouted.

"You tell them, Buffy."

"Will and the girl she's gone on a few dates with had sex a few days ago. When she woke up, the other girl was gone. Willow hasn't heard from or seen her since then."

"Whoa, sorry about that, Red. A hot and sweet girl like you doesn't deserve that."

"Thanks, Faith."

"I understand why you're a little upset, but why the tears?" Dawn mumbled.

Dawn felt bad at the sign of pain from the redhead.

"B-Because sh-she l-looked a l-little l-like T-Tara. When she didn't leave any kind of note, I just broke down. It was like I lost her all over again."

Dawn ran to the redhead and hugged her tightly as Willow and Buffy both shed a few tears.

"E-Enough about me. Tell us how the first date went," Willow insisted with a smile.

She and Buffy gazed at the other two as Dawn and Faith whispered before Dawn gushed about the date, leaving out what was said before they left the apartment. Willow and Buffy rolled their eyes at how Faith had called the movie, _Chasing Liberty_, a chick flick even though it was an accurate description. Dawn continued to tell them about the date as Buffy and Willow's gazes changed into open mouthed gapes at the two of them. Faith just smirked the entire time. Buffy had gotten a little uncomfortable when her sister mentioned them changing for bed in the same room but was relieved to hear that Faith had given Dawn some privacy.

"That was the SWEETEST thing I have ever heard," Buffy chirped as she hugged Dawn and smiled at Faith, "You really carried my sister upstairs like she was a princess?"

"Uh huh," Faith confirmed with a smirk.

"Thank you for showing her such a good time and not using that as a way to get her to have sex."

"I agree. I'm honestly jealous right now," Willow said.

"Best. Date. Ever," Dawn let out through sighs.

"You should see the pre-date picture they let me take, Will."

"Can I see it?" Willow directed to the brunette and the younger Summers.

"Sure," Dawn stated instantly, "I mean if it's ok with Faith."

"I guess it would be alright," Faith concluded.

Buffy ran to find the camera and showed the redhead before handing the camera to her sister, who showed Faith the picture.

"I take it back," Willow replied, "I'm really jealous."

"I guess then it would be too much to ask if you could do me a favor and teleport me back to Scotland."

"Sure, I can do that."

"Can you at least have some breakfast first?"

"Whatever you want, D. Can you wait that long, Red?"

"Yeah, there are some pancakes left. Buffy made a big stack in case you two woke up really hungry….Not that I'm saying you would have done anything to work up a big appetite…You said you didn't have sex… Not like that would be a bad thing….I mean…"

"Will, stop and breathe, ok?" Buffy suggested before she, Dawn, and Faith broke out into laughter.

Willow could only blush after the blonde had stopped her nervous babble. When they finished eating, Faith and Dawn each took a shower, got dressed again, and shared a sweet kiss goodbye before the slayer and witch vanished. Buffy decided to take a shower as Dawn cleaned up the mess left behind. She was thankful that Buffy wasn't in the room. Since Buffy was in the shower, she couldn't see the tears streaming down her sister's cheeks as her heart ached for the brunette. She made sure she looked good before Buffy joined her on the couch. They talked about the movie and other details she hadn't mentioned earlier. Buffy let her sister rest her head on her right shoulder as the two watched a few movies. Meanwhile, Faith had gone straight to her room and decided to listen to some music to take her mind off the girl she left back in Italy. She thought she was going to be ok until she heard the first song turn out be "Patience" by Guns 'n' Roses. She was thankful that nobody saw her and let tears fall down her cheeks. As Dawn's heart was aching for her, hers was aching for Dawn.

For around the next four months, Dawn and Faith frequently went on dates. Dawn teleported to Scotland for a few of them, but the rest were in Italy. They managed to lie about what happened on their second date, which was in Scotland. They had claimed to be going to the nearest town for the clichéd dinner and a movie again, but Dawn had gotten Faith to take her on an unscheduled patrol. All it took was a verbal pleading, a Summers pout, and the promise to never ask again. During the short patrol, Faith had constantly kept her eyes on her date. They were near the end of the agreed amount of time when they came across two vampires. Faith had staked hers with ease and observed closely as the teenage girl fought with hers. The younger Summers did a good job of blocking her face while throwing some of her own punches along with a few kicks. She was knocked down by what seemed to be a strong kick to her stomach. Faith got closer as the vampire leaped at Dawn, who was lying on her back. As he reached her, he was surprised with a hard kick to the chest. The girls watched as his right side hit the ground first. As he began to get up, Dawn promptly gave him a kick to the back of his right knee, which made him fall to his knees. She finished with a rapid stake to the heart.

After smiling at her victory, the teenager grilled the slayer on how she did. She was rewarded with the slayer telling her she did a great job and a passionate kiss that continued while Dawn was pushed backward to a nearby tree. They kissed as their hands traveled over each other's bodies. They had gotten in some groping before hands got under shirts and grazed over their hips and stomachs. It stopped instantly when Dawn heard the zipper of her pants pulled down. She lowered her head to see that they had been both unbuttoned and unzipped, exposing her underwear to the now regretful brunette, who started looking away from her. The younger girl reassured the older one she wasn't mad but asked what had brought on the heated make out when the slayer only got one vampire. Faith explained that seeing her date slay a vampire turned her on too. They got cleaned up as best as they could at a local diner before grabbing a bite to eat and heading back to the castle. They managed to sneak by the others so that Dawn could change her clothes. Faith, however, was able to coax Dawn into a second make out on Faith's bed.

It started with Faith taking off her own shirt and preventing the younger girl from putting one on as well. The slayer got Dawn onto her back, lightly pinned her wrists to the mattress, and straddled her legs while she kissed all over her date's bra-covered chest and stomach. Faith held in a smirk at the occasional giggles and moans from her date. When it had turned to moans, Dawn broke the hold Faith had on her wrists, grabbed the pillow behind her, and bit down on it. Faith soundlessly gloated for a few moments when Dawn did that. It ended once again after Faith had tried to do more than the younger Summers was ready for. The slayer had distracted her by using her tongue to tickle the other girl's stomach and belly button while swiftly unbuttoning and unzipping the pants. Faith apologized repeatedly as she pulled away from her date. Dawn shut her up with a soft kiss that only lasted a few seconds. As the couple came back downstairs, Xander, Vi, and Giles had noticed that the teenager wasn't wearing the same clothes she had on before the date.

Dawn came up with the excuse that she had accidentally got some food on her clothes and a playful food fight with Faith had made it worse. They appeared to believe it by the way the other couple laughed and Giles rolled his eyes before smiling. Faith had tried to get her to spend the night like she had done after the first date. The brunette had gotten Dawn alone for a second time and pleaded that she wouldn't do anything else that night if Dawn just stayed there until the morning. Dawn whispered she knew that Faith had other things on her mind than sleep. At the unusual look of fear from the slayer, Dawn promised again that she wasn't angry with her. When she saw that her best friend was skeptical, she assured her that only the idea that she might have given into the seduction if Faith's touch on the waistband of her underwear had continued a few moments longer had stopped her. Faith relented and gave her a hug and a kiss goodbye. After returning to her bedroom, Faith lay down on the bed and grabbed the pillow that had her best friend's scent on it. She held it to her chest and cried herself to sleep over what she had done, regardless of what Dawn had told her.

From that day on, Faith worked harder at controlling her urges around Dawn. There were a few times that it ended earlier than Dawn expected, leaving her to be the one left wanting more. Their third date, which just happened to be on Valentine's Day, was very memorable as well. Because it wasn't warm enough in Italy for what they wanted to do, Dawn had teleported them to a tropical beach. As soon as they found a spot they liked, they stripped down to bikinis and laid down a few towels. Faith had made her girlfriend speechless with a bikini that left little to the imagination. Dawn's wasn't that revealing but still enough to get the slayer slightly worked up. They raced to the water and splashed around like they had done when they were a lot younger. After that, they headed back to their towels to enjoy a picnic. Since Dawn had done the teleporting, Faith had prepared the meal. She had cooked some of their favorite foods. After they were full, the couple put suntan lotion on themselves and each other. Faith had put some on Dawn's back before getting onto her stomach. She made Dawn gasp by asking her to do more than her back. Dawn nearly gulped as her hands applied the lotion to Faith's butt. Faith thanked her as Dawn lay down on her back beside Faith.

The first chance they got, they switched to a slightly heated make out. When they discovered that they were temporarily alone, Dawn pushed the slayer onto her back and got on top of her. During the kissing, Faith surprised her by removing her top so that Dawn could get a great view of what she could expect when the time came. Dawn was in awe of the chest in front of her. Faith took advantage of the look on Dawn's face by flipping the other girl onto her back and climbed on top. Dawn sighed after seeing Faith putting the top back on and that the older girl had flipped her onto her back. She confided to the brunette that the sight of her almost naked girlfriend had nearly made her decide to give into the apparent seduction. Faith told her that she only did it to tease her. Dawn smiled back at her and pulled her into a hug, which was followed by soft kissing and fingers running through both of their hair. At the sound of more people coming onto the beach, Faith rolled off Dawn and lay down on her back wile Dawn chose to lay on her stomach. She shrieked softly at how the slayer gently smacked her on the left side of her butt. Dawn glanced over at Faith and saw a smirk. Dawn could only sigh as she rested her head on the towel.

They spent as much time as they could together before Dawn had to be home. She eventually returned and saw that Willow was still there. Her sister and the redhead had spent the day together and watched sappy movies since neither had a date that day. They had gotten Dawn to describe as much of the date as they could. The slayer and the witch smiled while Dawn talked about the fun they had in the water, the picnic, the bikini Faith had chosen, and even mentioned part of the make out. When Willow accidentally asked for more details, Dawn showed the marks left on both sides of her neck. Although Faith claimed each time that everything was cool after the following make-outs would end, Dawn was afraid. She was scared to think of how much longer Faith would wait for her to be ready. If it wasn't soon, she feared that Faith would dump her and find someone else. Someone who was more than willing to give in to everything the slayer wanted to do.

She knew she loved Faith as much as she possibly could. She also worried that even though Faith clearly loved her, too, saying it would make the woman want to get as far away from her as possible. She ended up crying herself to sleep the first night she thought about it. Meanwhile, Faith was thinking most of the same things. She knew she loved Dawn, but was afraid to actually say it. The brief crush she had on Buffy had never made her feel this way. She had an idea that her girlfriend felt the same way, but was hesitant to ask. If she did, she might not get the response she was hoping for and everything great between them could be possibly ruined, especially the friendship they had worked so hard on to rebuild. The thought of losing that caused her to cry herself to sleep as well. Before she closed her eyes, she berated herself for letting her emotions get to this point.

The next morning, they put those negative thoughts out of their minds. They let everyone know that they were an official couple now. When they were questioned if the couple had gone along with the "third date rule", it was answered with a firm no. They got concerned when they thought Buffy and the other Scoobies were getting an idea of how they truly felt about each other. The two hadn't even brought it up in their own conversations yet. To prevent anymore assumptions before they admitted it to the group, the couple wouldn't always act sweet to each other. There had been a few staged fights. It didn't matter if it was when they were in front of the entire Scooby gang or on the phone with each other. Dawn knew that Buffy would most likely share the information with Willow and Xander, who would then pass it along through their own gossip grapevine.

They made it very believable when Dawn had faked tears once. The couple had come up with code words and even made motions with their hands so both knew that the fights were an act. Buffy had suggested that the two take a break from each other after they had all seen the first public fight. During that fight, Faith had called Dawn a whiny, clingy brat. Dawn shot back with calling her a slut that was probably cheating on her whenever she got the chance. That was the one that had ended in tears. The beginning of the week of Faith's birthday, they made it seem that they had made up for the sake of that very special occasion.

Saturday, May 22nd; Faith's 23rd birthday, the Watcher's Council/slayer training school in Scotland.

Everyone was glad to see the two happy around each other again. As Buffy and Willow began to let them know it was time for the cake, Dawn and Faith acted like something was wrong again.

"Faith, we need to talk alone, NOW!"

"Whatever, D."

Their friends got worried at the expressions on the couple's faces as they headed to Faith's bedroom. They attempted to follow the couple until Buffy stopped them with a convincing stare, but her best friend still expressed her concern.

"What do think is wrong now, Buff?"

"I…I don't know, Will. I hope they work it out. They're really good together when they're not fighting."

"I agree. I can't understand how they could go from the way they were after the first date to …"

"Arguing and name calling?" Xander and Vi interrupted.

"Yeah," Buffy and Willow declared at the same time.

Meanwhile, Faith's bedroom

"What is it, D?"

"I can't do this anymore."

"Can't do what?"

"Keep teleporting both of us back and forth between here and Rome."

"Y-You're br-breaking up w-with m-me?" Faith stuttered as she began to panic and started pacing back in forth in front of Dawn, "And on my birthday. That's just cruel. I mean I guess I should have expected this. Not about how you're breaking up with me on a day like this. It's just that nothing good in my life lasts for a long time, except for being a kick ass slayer with a hot body."

"That's not what I'm saying, Faith. So stop pacing and look at me."

"What are you saying?"

"I know that since Giles is closing down the school because they've all been trained and he's moving the headquarters back to London, you're wondering what you're going to do."

"Yeah."

"I want you to move to Rome. That way we can live in the same city. Whenever there's a possible apocalypse somewhere else in the world, you and Buffy can go there and stop it like you've done before. You could always get a job dealing with security."

"Like me being a COP? With my history, it would be kind of ironic. Don't you think?"

"Not necessarily a cop, maybe a bouncer in a club or part of a security team for sporting events or concerts. What do you say?"

"I say yes, but where I would live?"

"We could help you find a place of your own, and you could stay with me and Buffy until you do."

"You mean you don't want to live with just me right now?" Faith questioned with a smirk.

"I don't think you and I are ready for that yet. And the three of us living together might not work either."

"True. Ok, I'll move to Rome. So are we done here? I mean is there anything else either one of us the needs to say?"

"We need to let the rest of them know that we lied, and we're actually good. They're probably worried right now."

"You're right. You've played the anger thing well. It kind of turned me on actually."

Dawn could only smile and blush as they left the room but made sure to appear casual as they joined the others again.

A few minutes later

There were gasps and sighs of relief when the crowd didn't see any signs of injury on either girl.

"So…So everything's alright between you two now?"

"Five by five, B."

"Then what was that about?" Xander cut in.

"It was an act. In fact, every fight we've been in since out first date was an act," Dawn confessed as they began to be gawked at by everyone.

"Let me get this straight," Buffy muttered and was interrupted by laughter at the word 'straight'. "All of the yelling, name calling, and even your tears were a lie?"

"Yes," Dawn divulged.

"Why?"

"Because telling all of you to be quiet when you were teasing us wasn't working, and I wanted to hide how I was truly feeling until I was ready to tell the truth."

"What, that you really like each other? We kind of sensed that after the first couple of dates," Willow assumed.

"No. That I LOVE her," Dawn admitted before doing a quick, ninety degree turn to face Faith, "I love you, Faith. More than I thought I could love someone other than a relative. You make me the happiest I have ever been in my life."

"Really, how do you know?"

"I can feel it in my heart when we talk on the phone, when we're around each other, and when we touch. When we kiss, it feels like my heart is going to melt; and I get weak in the knees. When we hold hands, I feel the electricity and my heart seems to beat faster and louder."

"I…I…I love you too. I never thought I could feel the same away about anyone."

The shock that had started at the beginning of Dawn's confession of love increased when Faith had done the same. It only got bigger with what happened after that.

"I know," Dawn affirmed before kissing the brunette softly for a few seconds.

"YOU KNOW?" Faith yelled accidentally, making Dawn smile, "Sorry about yelling, but how long have you known?"

"I was completely sure you loved me right after the first date. When were you sure that you loved me?"

"The morning after our first date, I felt this pain in my heart as I hung out in my room. Since I never felt that way before, I knew it was love. How about when you knew you loved me?"

"I guess I could tell I was falling for you around Christmas. I was sure it was love when we talked the morning before our first date."

Faith kissed her back suddenly before they twirled around to see what the others were thinking. The newbies there were smiling. Buffy and Willow were shedding tears as Xander's right arm was around Willow's shoulders. Vi was crying a little, too, as her head rested on Xander's left shoulder, Xander was smiling a little, and Giles was almost beaming at how happy Dawn, who he considered a surrogate daughter, was; and that Faith was just as happy. They all became nervous at the stern stare the blonde started giving the couple.

"Would you die for her, Faith?"

"You heard what we said, B."

"I know what I heard," Buffy told them before raising her voice but still continued calmly. "Would you die for her?"

"YES!" Faith answered just as calmly but louder than Buffy had done, "And if her death was something I couldn't prevent, I would feel like I was dying a little each day I was without her after that."

"Ditto," came from Dawn.

"No, Dawn," Faith announced firmly.

"No what?"

"I won't let you die for me because…"

"Because?"

"Because everyone here will love you more than they will ever care about me. They need you MORE than me. There's only one of you. There are hundreds of other slayers. As much as we've all tried to be good friends, I sometimes feel that Buffy, Xander, and Willow are only nice to me because of you. And also wouldn't mind that much if I suddenly wasn't around anymore."

There was a non-verbal "Whoa." from everyone as the rest of the Scoobies felt like they had been slapped across the face, figuratively speaking.

"NEVER say that again! Don't you know how much it would hurt me here if you weren't around," Dawn almost spat through angry tears as she paused to point to her heart, "Whether or not they need or care about you as much as they love me is unimportant. I'M the one who loves and needs YOU! I'll be DAMNED before I let your insecurities ruin what we have now and where it could lead."

At hearing that, Faith temporarily glanced down at the floor in regret over the pain she had caused. She carefully lifted her head when Dawn brought her into a hug and returned it instantly. Since Faith's head was on Dawn's right shoulder and her back was to the rest of them during the hug, she didn't see the muted communication between Dawn and the Scoobies. Dawn had sent them an almost icy glare that obviously meant they needed to respond to Faith's claim. Giles and the Scoobies stood there wordlessly as the others waited for one of them to speak up. At the same time, Faith was holding back a laugh at how Dawn remained still and speechless as one of the slayer's hands drew small circles on her lower back and the other was currently resting on her butt. For a second, the younger Summers was tempted to do the same thing but decided against it.

"F-Faith," the older Summers finally choked out.

"Yeah," Faith murmured after she stepped back and turned to face them.

"I-I'm s-sorry w-we ev-ever m-made y-you f-feel th-that w-way," Buffy apologized as she moved toward the other slayer.

Before Faith or Dawn could say another word, the blonde gave the brunette the most caring hug she had ever given her, which caused a chain reaction. Before it was over, everyone else had hugged Faith.

"Feel better now?" Dawn guessed.

"Much. I…," Faith got out before stopping to smirk at her girlfriend.

"What?" Dawn asked casually.

"If I can get you to love me already, can you imagine what it will be like when we finally have sex?"

Dawn remained quiet as Faith smirked again, almost all of the rest of them gasped, and Giles appeared extremely uncomfortable.

"You mean you haven't…" Willow and Xander said before being interrupted by the blonde.

"Willow, Xander, not now," Buffy exclaimed before focusing on the couple, "Are you serious?"

"Of course, B. Not without trying on my part though. D's a tease…just her sister."

Their friends let out a groan and expected the sisters to get angry but were surprised with a laugh from both of them.

"Now it's time for us to sing to you before you make a wish and blow out the candles," Dawn stated to change the topic as she walked over to the table with the cake and pulled the brunette along with her.

"Before that, I want to say something else to Faith," Buffy interrupted.

"What is it, B?"

'We've seen all the good you've done since coming back to Sunnydale: helping us in the fight against The First, training hundreds of newbie slayers, protecting Dawn, falling in love with her, and not making her another case of 'Get some, get gone.' I think I speak for all of the Scooby gang and Giles when I say that you've redeemed yourself."

"Thanks. But Angel once told me that no matter what, I'd always be fighting for it."

Faith scanned over the Scooby gang for the response to what the blonde had revealed. They had all nodded positively, with Dawn's being the first and Xander's the last. Then Dawn lit the candles.

"I don't need to make a wish, D."

"Why?" Dawn inquired even though she knew what the slayer was going to say.

"Because it already came true when you said that you love me," the brunette responded and didn't mind what she heard next.

"AW!" was heard from Buffy, Willow, Vi, and most of the newbies.

"Well, think of something else then blow them out," Dawn advised.

Immediately after that, everyone sang to her. Faith held back tears at how softly Dawn sang to her. She cast a glimpse at her girlfriend before blowing out the candles. When they had eaten the entire cake and Faith had opened her presents, they headed to a club they had been to before and danced like they had the night of Buffy's birthday. The blonde was able to not make a scene since they all knew how the couple felt about each other. She and Willow had even joked about being jealous of them again. When the party was over, Dawn decided to spend the night with Faith despite Buffy's initial objections. After the couple reassured the blonde nothing would happen, Willow teleported Buffy back to Italy and herself back to Brazil.


	19. Chapter 19

The Path To Redemption

Chapter 19

Author: twin who likes to travel

Rating: R/NC-17

Summary: The gang celebrates Dawn's eighteenth birthday. Dawn and Faith go all the way and have a conversation about their relationship. They also bring up the current social status of two other members of the Scooby gang.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Reviews: I would like them. Constructive criticism is ok.

Author's notes: While I was trying to decide which slow song for Dawn and Faith to dance to, "Lucky" by Bif Naked popped into my head. For those who might not know that song, it was the one Parker and Buffy danced to at the party in "The Harsh Light Of Day" from the fourth season. This is the FINAL chapter. It ends around five minutes before the events of "Our Love" and includes more references to that story and "She Saved The Best For Last". There is also a reference to "Faith, Hope, and Trick". I hope that you liked this story as much or at least almost as much as the first four in this saga. If you didn't, I'm sorry; but I tried to make it that you would. rampantjake, thanks for reviewing this and adding it to your list of favorite stories. Ray2230, thanks for the review, but I'm not sure what you meant by it inspires you to get to work. Does that mean you are getting ready to write a story yourself? Of course Buffy's a little jealous. I said so twice in that chapter. I'm happy that you're loving it.

* * *

><p>Tuesday, June 22nd; Dawn's eighteenth birthday, a local club in Rome, Italy<p>

Dawn was having a great birthday so far. She liked the clothes and jewelry she got, but Faith's present still had her reeling. The slayer had gotten another tattoo, this time on her left arm. The slayer had told her it was a sign of her devotion to the teenager. It was a nice scene with the sun beginning to rise up over water to symbolize the meaning of Dawn's name. Both of their initials were even along the edge of the smiling sun. Dawn commented about how it was the cutest thing she had seen when it was done. Even though she expected to hear that from her girlfriend, Faith still frowned a little when Dawn said it. Everyone saw how a smile from the birthday girl helped change the frown into a smirk. Dawn decided that she was ready to take it all the way with Faith that night. She just had to wait until the right time to tell her.

After the traditional cake and presents, the Scoobies, Faith, and a few newbie slayers went to the same club, which had become a favorite of theirs. The entire group had a few drinks before Faith and Dawn went to the dance floor. Their friends were surprised when the first song they danced to had been a slow one. The moment Dawn felt herself up against the brunette, she noticed something, almost gasped, and looked Faith in the eyes. Faith simply smirked at her before they began to dance. As the couple clung to each other in a loving way, Buffy and Willow thought back to those same types of moments they had with their exes. It almost brought tears to their eyes. That was until Buffy recognized the song and groaned. When Willow became curious, Buffy explained where she had heard it before. After the song was over and the pace of the music picked up, Faith and Dawn chose to torture their friends.

They rubbed up against each other every chance they got. The brief period of time the girls were facing each other, they took a few seconds to grope the other's butt and shared a kiss where their lips barely touched and lasted only for a moment. They glimpsed over at their friends, who were watching in shock with Xander's mouth being open the most. Faith then spun the younger girl around so that Dawn's back was to her. Faith held Dawn as close as she could by the hips as she nuzzled the right side of Dawn's neck. Dawn ran the fingers on her right hand through Faith's hair. She moved away a little as it started to really get to her in an impure way, especially after she was reminded that Faith wasn't wearing a bra this time. She attempted to stay just far enough away that she wasn't touching Faith, only to be brought back up against the slayer. This time, Faith chose to pull the other girl's shirt out of her pants, so she could put them on the skin underneath it. Dawn gasped when Faith placed her hands on the skin above Dawn's hips. She gulped at hearing slight growling coming from Faith while fingertips on the slayer's right hand found their way to Dawn's stomach.

"Faith, I'm READY now," Dawn whispered as the song ended, and they started strolling to where their friends had finally stopped gaping at them.

"Ready? As in ready to leave the club, or READY ready?"

"Both."

"Your place or mine?"

"Definitely yours."

"Wicked."

The couple then said some quick goodbyes before almost racing out of the club.

Around twenty minutes later, Faith's bedroom

The cab driver had sped most of the way at Faith's encouragement, which included lifting up her shirt and flashing him. She quickly paid the guy, scooped Dawn up in her arms, and raced up the stairs to her apartment. After they were sure the door was locked and their shoes and boots were off, Dawn ran back to the bedroom with Faith hot on her trail. Faith was rewarded with a very heated kiss and her back being used to close the bedroom door after she entered the room. As arms wrapped around her, Faith hands went straight for Dawn's butt. A loud moan was heard as Faith squeezed it. Then Faith broke the hold, which made Dawn break the kiss.

"Faith, why did you…," Dawn said before being interrupted by Faith's hands immediately unbuttoning and unzipping her pants. Dawn smiled and suggested to the very eager woman in front of her, "Faith, let me h…."

Before she could even finish that statement, Faith was pulling down the pants. Dawn gulped as her underwear had started coming down along with them. Faith paused briefly when her girlfriend grabbed onto the sides of the underwear. Faith then began pulling up the shirt just as fast while the pants fell to the floor. In less than a minute, Dawn was standing there in only underwear. The brunette noticed it was the most revealing she had ever seen Dawn wear. She could tell the birthday girl meant business with the clasp being in front of the bra this time. When she caught the stare Dawn was giving her, Faith lifted her arms so that Dawn could remove her shirt. Dawn nearly gawked in awe at the bare chest in front of her as she unbuckled Faith's belt, unbuttoned the pants, and unzipped them to discover that the bra wasn't the only thing Faith had decided not to wear tonight.

"You were pretty sure of yourself when you got dressed earlier, huh?"

"Yeah; and apparently, I wasn't the only one either."

"What do you mean?" Dawn asked with a blush that grew by the second.

"I've never seen you wear underwear that revealing before and never a front clasp bra," Faith explained before peering down at Dawn's hands, which still had a hold on her pants, "Well, what are you waiting for, D?"

"What do you…," Dawn began to question before being advised to look down and added when she did, "Oh, right."

Dawn slowly pulled down the slayer's pants. As they started to fall, Dawn placed her hands on Faith's hips. At the sound of them hitting the floor, the couple took a step away from each other so Faith could step out of the pants and kick them over to where her shirt was on the floor. When Faith saw that her girlfriend was ogling her again, she surprised her by picking her up and tossing her onto the bed. She laughed as Dawn landed on her back with a small yelp. Faith joined her but teased her by crawling toward her like a predator about ready to devour their prey before spreading the girl's legs farther apart from each other. Dawn smiled as the teasing continued with Faith slowly unhooking the bra to expose Dawn's chest and pushing it off her shoulders.

The exact moment after Dawn tossed it away, her back was pushed to the bed by the powerful woman above her. Dawn couldn't stop the moans at the feeling of hands caressing her bare chest and stomach. She gasped as hands were replaced by soft lips. While Faith's mouth and tongue focused on Dawn's chest, her hands had a hold on Dawn's upper thighs. At the feeling of Faith's hands, mouth, and tongue on her, the birthday girl's hands moved to Faith's dark hair. Faith held back laughs and smirks at what had turned into shrieks from the other girl. Dawn whimpered at the loss of their touching after the slayer used her hands to put Dawn's hands back on the bed beside her head. The younger woman got a little worried when the brunette just gazed at her.

"Don't stop now, Faith."

"I'm not. I…"

"You're what?"

"Just watch," Faith ordered and smirked while Dawn gasped at Faith's hands placing both of her legs over Faith's left shoulder to make removing the last of her underwear even easier.

"You can rip them off if you want to."

"Not a chance, D. I like how you look in them. Next time, I promise."

"I can even help you if…," Dawn offered as she reached for the sides of her underwear

"Don't," Faith commanded as she grabbed Dawn's hands and laid them on the bed.

Dawn sighed and let Faith get a hold of the underwear. Faith had gotten it about two inches past Dawn's butt before suddenly stopping. Dawn became confused and attempted to talk. Faith silently advised not to and moved Dawn's right leg so her legs were draped over both of the slayer's shoulders. Dawn unexpectedly began to giggle as the brunette leaned down and proceeded to use her teeth to slowly pull it off the rest of the way. Faith stopped for the second time as they reached the younger girl's knees and arched an eyebrow at her.

"I'm sorry, Faith, I'll…"

"Don't be."

"Then why did you stop again?"

"Because I wasn't expecting you to do that for some reason, but I think it's cute though. If ya wanna giggle, ya can. It's five by five, D."

"Thanks," Dawn said with a grateful smile at hearing her girlfriend talking that way.

After they had officially become a couple, Faith saved her old way of speaking for when the two were alone. The giggling continued while Faith was still working on the item of clothing. As Dawn's legs were lifted off of the slayer's shoulders by the ankles, she shifted her feet a little to make it even easier for her underwear to be taken off. The younger Summers almost let out another shriek as Faith let go of her ankles, yanked off the underwear, and caught the ankles again all in less than ten seconds. Then she was carefully lowered back down onto the bed.

"You're…," the brunette got out before being interrupted.

"I'm what?"

"You're beautiful."

"Really?" Dawn murmured before blushing, which got brighter as Faith's smirk grew every second.

"Yes."

"You're beautiful too."

"I already knew that, but thanks for saying it."

Before Faith could say another word, Dawn gave her a surprise of her own and flipped the other girl onto her back. As soon as Faith's back was on the bed, Dawn kissed her all over her face and switched to the neck while her hands ran through Faith's hair.

"Slow down, girlfriend. We have plenty of time. I want you to enjoy every second," Faith instructed as she rolled the girl onto her back again.

"I will. It's just that I've wanted to be ready for so long. I'm sorry I made you wait so long."

"Once again, don't be."

"I also want to make sure you're happy and it's special for both of us."

"I'm with you. That's all I need to make it special. Don't you know that by now?" "Yes."

"Then let me make love to you."

Both became silent at how Faith had used the words "make love", not "have sex". Faith almost blushed at the heartwarming smile coming from Dawn. The slayer started to kiss her on the lips as the fingers on her right hand traveled down from the waist and entered her girlfriend slowly. Dawn, who had remained still until then, wrapped her legs around her girlfriend again and got her hands on the girl's back. Faith ignored the slight pain of Dawn's fingernails clawing into her back and legs around her butt as her fingers thoroughly explored inside the girl below her. After she was finished, she gently pulled them out. Dawn gaped as Faith seductively licked off almost every finger that had been inside the younger Summers. When the brunette put the remaining finger in front of Dawn's mouth and quietly encouraged her to open her mouth, Dawn kept her mouth shut and shook her head. Faith gave her a disappointed glance before licking it clean.

'Faith, don't st…," Dawn began to beg as she was instructed to release the hold her legs had on Faith.

"Sshh," Faith replied before her lips left a trail of kisses on Dawn's body from her chest down to the waist before going down her right leg.

She teasingly worked her way back up the same leg, kissing the inner part this time. Just as Dawn thought Faith was going to enter her again, Faith surprised her and did the same thing to her left leg. She chuckled a little as she switched from one leg to the other. She didn't let the frown she got from Dawn, who had sat up enough to get a good gaze of the slayer, bother her. She pushed her until Dawn landed on her back for the third time. She then entered the girl's body again with an even more eager tongue as her hands squeezed the soft skin of Dawn's butt. Dawn shrieked and moaned in ecstasy as her body rose and fell back onto the bed repeatedly. Her left hand gripped the bed sheet as the right ran through dark hair and held Faith's head in its current location as long as she could. Faith blocked out the second feeling of slight pain as legs wrapped around her yet again and feet kicked her back. Dawn let out a final shriek as Faith finished.

"Damn, D, I didn't think you could get that worked up and shriek that loud or often," Faith complimented as she lay on top of the girl again with her head on Dawn's chest.

"It's all because of you. That was…beyond amazing. I c-can o-only h-hope I c-can b-be as g-good."

"Well, let's find out. I'm ready when you are," Faith confided as she instantly got on her back again.

"You don't have to ask me twice."

"That's good."

Dawn prevented Faith from kissing her, knowing what was still on her lips and possibly in her mouth. Dawn pleaded that the older girl make a brief trip to the bathroom and gargle. Faith relented and got out of bed but left with a seductive strut. Dawn pounced on her and did everything that Faith had done to her as soon as Faith was on her back again. Dawn was proud of herself that she had made Faith make the same noises she had made. She was crawling her way up the brunette's body so they could be face to face. The younger Summers was caught by surprise at being brought into another kiss. Shortly after it had started, Faith had put her tongue in Dawn's mouth, knowing what had still been on Dawn's lips. When they checked the clock, they saw that at least half an hour had passed by. They also spotted the sweat covering their exposed bodies.

"I guess we should take a shower," Faith suggested as she got off the bed.

"A shower?"

"Yeah."

"You mean as in one, not two? That we share?"

"Yes," Faith affirmed as she reached the door and turned around to see Dawn sitting up and clutching the sheet to the front of her body, "Something wrong, D? After what happened for at least the last half hour, you shouldn't feel the need to hide anything. Besides, we're alone, remember?"

"You're right again," Dawn conceded as she got up, strolled over to Faith, and grabbed the outstretched hand.

"Will you stay the rest of the night?" Faith inquired.

"If you really want me to."

"I wouldn't have asked if I didn't."

"Faith?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think I would look good with a tattoo?"

"Is this because of the one I got?"

"Maybe, so what do you think? I'm thinking maybe of a cross or a heart with our initials on it and it would be…"

"The only person I want putting marks on you is me."

"So then that's a no?"

"That's right."

They walked hand in hand into the bathroom and closed the door. Before Faith could even turn on the water, she heard Dawn break down into tears.

"Whoa. What's wrong, D?" Faith questioned as she hugged the crying girl hiding her face in her hands, "Tell me what I did wrong so I can apologize."

"It's not you, it's me," Dawn answered after Faith stepped back and pulled the teenager's hands away.

"What about you?" Faith responded as she brushed a few stray hairs away from the teenager's face.

"Never mind. It's stupid, and I feel even worse now that I'm crying and worrying you."

"If it's making you cry, it's not stupid, ok? And as girlfriends, it's our job to worry about the other, understand?" Faith insisted as she hugged her girlfriend.

"Yeah."

"Then talk to me so I can make it better."

"You promise to be completely honest?" Dawn mumbled as she broke the hug and peeked up at the other girl.

"I have been since we went on that first date, so why would I stop now?"

Faith shared the smile that Dawn let out at that hearing that.

"W-Was I g-good? I mean as good as the others you've been with in that way."

"You thought I was faking it, don't you?"

"Maybe. By the way, I'm sorry for leaving those red marks on your back from the clawing and kicking."

"D, none of them can compare to what we did. It was just sex with the others. With you, I felt our love the entire time. As for the other thing, don't worry about it, ok?"

"Ok. I wasn't sure how would I compare to all the people you've been with in that way."

"There will never be anyone else for me. It's me and you until the day we die. I wouldn't have gotten this tattoo otherwise."

Faith smirked as both eyed the tattoo on her left arm. She sighed happily as Dawn placed a quick, soft kiss on the sun part of it and talked when they were eye to eye again.

"It's like that song you wanted me to hear the day we were unpacking my stuff and setting up everything in this sweet apartment."

"Which song was that?" Dawn challenged as she pretended to not know what Faith was talking about.

Faith knew what she was doing and decided to humor her.

"You know the one that started with me not getting enough when people keep telling me I'll never fall in love and keep retreating or whatever. Then something about a four leaf clover and taking all worry out of my mind."

"Maybe. What else do you remember?"

"Something about you having the only key to my heart and being able to stop me from falling apart."

"Uh huh. Is that all you can remember?"

"No, there was something about releasing myself from misery. That your love was the only thing that was going to set me free. That's all I can remember. Oh, that and you thought it should be our song because it kind of fit with us."

"Don't you agree?"

"I guess so. I'm not really big on being one that lets the relationship be defined by one song. But if it makes you happy, it makes me happy. Are we good now?"

"Yes," Dawn divulged with a smile.

"Great, because as much as I love being naked with you, staying all sweaty isn't. One thing I must say though is that you have a lot of stamina for a girl who's not a slayer."

Dawn instantly remembered that throughout this entire conversation they had been completely naked, making her blush.

"Well, the monks made part of me from Buffy's DNA, so we share the same bloodline," Dawn explained before blushing a second time.

Faith spun around and turned on the shower. She made sure the water was warm enough for both of them. She stepped in first and held Dawn's hand carefully as the younger girl got in.

"Oh by the way, the song is 'Let My Love Open The Door' by Pete Townshend."

"I'll try to remember that from now on."

"Please do," Dawn requested as Faith smirked.

What Dawn didn't know was that even though it had been almost a month, Faith still remembered everything about the song: the artist, the title, every lyric, even how often the chorus was repeated. She would never tell Dawn that it would forever be her favorite song. If ever asked by Dawn what her favorite song was, she would reply with "Patience" by Guns 'n' Roses because it was the first song she heard after getting back to Scotland from their first date. They took turns with the shampoo. After helping each other by washing the other's back, Dawn lightly kissed where her fingernails and feet had come into contact with Faith's back, who decided to hide most of what she was feeling until the right moment. Dawn observed as the older girl washed the rest of her own body. Then she was handed the body wash so she could do the same thing. However, Faith did more than just watch her. As Dawn started at her shoulders and worked her way down her body, the slayer got behind her and pressed her body up against her. Dawn gasped at the sensation of skin on skin. She was rendered temporarily speechless as Faith placed her right hand on Dawn's and used it to help guide the sponge over the younger girl's chest and stomach in small circles.

As this was going on, Faith's left hand gently gripped Dawn's left hip. Dawn gulped when soft lips began touching the right side of her neck and the shoulder as well. She almost shivered at the warm breath as Faith suggested with a whisper that they do it in the shower when Dawn was finished. Now, it was the brunette's turn to hear that the other wanted to wait until the next time. She carefully stepped away and turned at the sound of a sigh. The older girl couldn't hide the expression of disappointment. She was comforted with a light kiss and almost broke it as her hands weren't stopped from touching the butt of the younger Summers. The kiss and touch ended three seconds later with the request that Faith let her finish washing up. Faith gazed with love at the body in front of her. After they were both finished, Faith stepped out first. She grabbed a towel when Dawn got out. Then the older girl surprised her again.

Instead of handing her the towel or wrapping one around her, she decided to dry Dawn off with it. Dawn smiled and did as ordered whenever she was told to move a certain way. When Faith was finished, Dawn stared at her. The slayer began to seductively dry herself off with the same towel. They glanced at each other as the other dried their hair. Before Faith could say another word, Dawn leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips again. The kiss was broken momentarily when Faith picked her up. Dawn immediately wrapped her legs and arms around Faith before starting to kiss her passionately. Faith was caressing the younger girl's back with her right hand and the left rested on her butt as they exited the bathroom. During the trip back to the bedroom, Faith's right hand suddenly moved down to her butt as well, Dawn was the one to break the kiss this time as the feeling of two hands gently squeezing her butt got her to moan even louder. After Dawn noticed how close they were to the bed, she quit kissing her. Faith groaned as her girlfriend let go of the hold on her and got back onto her feet.

"Wanna have sex one more time before we go to sleep?" Faith offered with a huge smirk.

"Again, really?" Dawn nearly laughed. _What a sex addict_.

"Yeah, so?" _She's probably thinking I'm a sex addict, but I don't really care._

"As much as I would like to, I need to get some sleep." _I can't believe I'm in love with a sex addict._

"Well, then it could just be me who…"

"No, Faith. And before you say anything, I think I know you well enough to know that you won't be satisfied with just that. First thing in the morning, I promise. And we can do it anywhere but…."

"ANYWHERE?"

"Anywhere but the balcony. I don't want our neighbors watching us plus it's not warm enough out anyway."

"When did you decide to bring out your freaky side?"

"When I got together with a sex addict."

"Wait and see, D. After I'm done with ya tomorrow, you will be just as addicted to sex as me. Oh, we could even include some role playing with costumes."

"Maybe," Dawn claimed with a slightly raised eyebrow, "What do you have in mind?"

"You'll have to wait until tomorrow," Faith stated as she momentarily thought about the ones she had bought during her first day living in Rome, Italy.

She had bought a pleated, plaid skirt to go along with a private schoolgirl idea, a cheerleader uniform, and an old style, white, nurse uniform. She was sure they either girl could fit in them. Dawn gave her a sleepy smile before reaching for her underwear.

"It's just us here, D, and I'm not going to put any on until the morning. So you can go without them if you're up for that. Besides, it will feel better when you eventually wind up on top of me…like last time."

After blushing, Dawn responded, "You said it didn't bother you."

"It didn't. My hand wouldn't have ended up on your butt otherwise."

"Then why did you say that?"

"Just making a point."

"What, that you love being naked with me? You said that before the shower, remember?"

"That I love being with you; us being naked is just a GREAT bonus."

"Well, if you aren't going to, I guess I can leave them off too."

"That's my girl," Faith commented while picking up the covers off the floor and getting into bed, knowing that Dawn was ogling her as she did.

She then put them over her as she lay down on her back and waited patiently for Dawn.

"I like the sound of that," Dawn confessed and continued when Faith arched an eyebrow at her, "I mean the part about being your girl…Not about us not wearing anything to bed…Well, I like that too…I mean who wouldn't like a beautiful girl who wanted to do that…Not that I would do that a lot…Umm…Feel free to stop me at any time."

"Alright," Faith agreed as she lifted up the covers on her left side and winked at her.

Dawn blushed at her as she climbed under the covers and snuggled up beside her girlfriend.

"Faith?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you sleep naked a lot?"

"Define a lot."

"How many times since the time you told us about back in Sunnydale? You know when you saved that church group and the cops arrested both you and the preacher or whatever because you were naked."

"This is the first time since then that I did that."

"Oh," Dawn replied and smiled a little bit before continuing, "Not even with Robin?"

"Nope. Hey, what's up with B?"

"What do you mean?"

"Is she still hooking up with that vampire, demon, or whatever who calls himself 'The Immortal'?"

"I think so. Why do you ask?"

"Because I'm thinking that maybe she should be with someone else."

"Like who?"

"Possibly Red."

"Buffy's not gay like Willow is. Why would you say that?"

"Because they seem to be hanging out together a lot more and are very close when they do."

"Of course they're close. They're best friends. Willow's just going through a rough time right now."

"I get that. I really do. But do best friends really share a bed that often?"

"It's not that often. And they trust each other."

"Like the way we trust each other?"

"Yeah," Dawn affirmed and added at another smirk from the slayer, "What are you trying to say? That if Willow showed any clear signs that she felt that way about Buffy, my sister would be open to the idea of getting together with her?"

"Exactly. I mean it's not unheard of for friends to start feeling that way about each other. I mean look at us. And don't forget that she had that one night stand with Satsu and what I almost got her to do."

"I think you're wrong."

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. We'll just have to pay closer attention to know for sure," Faith advised before turning the light off with a clap of her hands, making Dawn laugh.

Once again, a slightly opened, window blind let the moonlight come though and land on their faces.

"Ok," Dawn consented while snuggling up beside her even more.

Dawn used her left index finger to draw an invisible heart around the other girl's belly button under the covers and rested her left arm on that same stomach. Faith reacted to that by kissing Dawn gently on her forehead, slowly grabbing Dawn's left hand with her right, and placing both of them over her heart. Both girls let out a happy sigh at the feeling of skin on skin as they prepared to fall asleep.

The End


End file.
